The Preacher
by impalapal
Summary: A hunt in the woods goes wrong leaving Dean fighting for his life and Sam fearing he will never see his brother again. Lots of hurt Dean, some hurt Sam and worried Sam and Bobby. No angels,some demons and Bobby can walk. Just a simple hunt!
1. Chapter 1

**The Preacher**

**Hope you enjoy this ****one; there are no angels, no Lucifer and no apocalypse just a hunt although there is mention of Dean's time in hell in the first chapter and maybe future ones. Oh and Bobby was never possessed and is not confined to a wheelchair.**

**Lots of hurt Dean, some hurt Sam. Worried Sam and Bobby**

**Warning: There will be some bad language.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own, mores the pity.**

**A huge great big thank you to sjd for lending an ear when I needed one.**

**Chapter One**

The spirit let rip an ear shattering screech as it was engulfed in a ball of flame leaving Sam breathing hard and searching the dark, damp and gloomy basement for any sign of his brother, the same brother who once again had been tossed around like a rag doll while Sam took care of salting and burning the remains.

Sidestepping the still burning bones Sam cautiously began his search, "Dean, Dean?" but was answered with only silence, not even the sound of breathing 'No, not gonna think that' his mind reprimanded him as he continued. He pulled the flashlight out of his pocket even whilst knowing it wasn't gonna work, the fucking spirit had somehow managed to shatter both his and Dean's only source of light whilst on its rampage.

He skirted upturned boxes, peered into dark corners and ran long fingers over the surface of the wall as he went. After what felt like hours but was in fact only minutes Sam was on the verge of panic, he still hadn't found any trace of his brother and was considering his next move when he stumbled, his foot hitting an immovable object. Falling to his knees he knew, just knew he'd found his brother, relief warring with fear as to what condition he would be in.

Bringing his face low Sam gulped to stop the panic taking over, even in this light he could see the blood smeared over his brothers face, the familiar green eyes hidden behind closed lids and most terrifying of all Dean's chest was still, not even a shallow movement to indicate life.

Laying one hand on his brothers still torso Sam's heart sped up as it was immediately engulfed in blood "Nonononono, you're not dead, you're not" fell from his lips as tears formed in his eyes. He pressed trembling fingers against the cold skin of his siblings neck and nearly passed out with relief when the tell tale thrum of a pulse, a very weak pulse but a pulse all the same beat against his fingertips.

With renewed energy and careless of the dark Sam heaved as he hauled his brothers solid form up and over his shoulder and moved as quickly as he could with the added weight towards the hatch which would get them out of here and into the cold night air.

Breathing hard Sam relished the feel of fresh air on his sweat soaked face and pushed forward towards the most wonderful sight he thought he'd ever seen. The impala.

After laying his brother on the back seat and trying to find the source of the blood on his brother's chest Sam once again checked Dean's pulse and choked out a sob laden laugh as it continued to thrum its beat. Deciding that his best option was to get his brother back to Bobby's and reassured that Dean could make it Sam began the twenty minute drive to the Singer Salvage Yard where he knew Bobby would be able to fix Dean, his absolute trust and faith in the man who had become more of a father figure than mere friend over the years never wavering.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

By the time the unmistakeable purr of the Impala's engine could be heard pulling close to the front of the house Bobby had everything ready, had prepared a bed, gathered all the equipment he had available and readied himself to deal with an unconscious and badly injured eldest Winchester and a terrified, on the verge of a breakdown youngest Winchester.

Bobby sighed, he knew this was gonna be tough, he had no idea just how badly Dean was hurt but he did know how badly it had affected Sam, could hear it in the kid's voice as he'd poured out the story not fifteen, twenty minutes ago. Heaving a steadying sigh Bobby pulled the door open and ran down the porch steps to help Sam who was already manoeuvring the prostrate form of his brother out of the back seat of the car.

"Sam, let me help." Bobby's heart sank at the sight of the blood covered hunter.

Once inside the house Bobby roughly removed Dean's shirt and began wiping away the drying blood whilst Sam hovered close by, his fingers moving to his brothers neck to check for a pulse every few seconds, his eyes glued but unseeing to the bloody chest.

"Sam. SAM."

Sam visibly jumped at the command "What, what is it?" His voice trembled with fear.

"It's okay Sam, the blood" Bobby indicated Dean's chest "must've run down from the head wound, there's nothing here, look."

Sam looked and sure enough Dean's chest was clear, clean of all the blood the only marks on the skin were the multitude of scars his brother had accumulated during the years "So he's gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, he'll be fine, gonna have a bitch of a headache but he'll be okay."

"Thank god."

Bobby quickly dragged a chair forward and pushed the kid onto the seat before he collapsed "Why don't you go get some rest Sam, you look beat."

"No, I'm staying; I need to talk to him."

"Well I think you're gonna be outta luck for a couple hours at least Sam cuz that brother a yours ain't wakin up yet an that's fer sure."

"I can wait." Sam's voice was a flat monotone.

"Sam, what's goin on?"

"No…"

"Don't say nothin cuz it's obvious you've got somethin goin on in that head a yours."

"It's between me 'n him." Sam indicated his still unconscious brother.

"Okay have it your way, I've got stuff to do, just holler if yer need me."

"Thanks Bobby"

Halfway through the door Bobby stopped; his eyes resting on the troubled young man slumped in the chair looking as though he had the weight of the world on his young shoulders "You're welcome son."

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Even though his eyes were closed Dean was aware of a presence in the room, knew he was being watched. Inching heavy eyelids apart and blinking furiously in an effort to clear his vision Dean's eyes landed on his brother, sitting beside him on a hard chair and staring at him, not speaking, not smiling, not frowning just staring at him.

"S a m y o u o k." He whispered.

"Yeah Dean I'm ok, how bout you?"

"Head hurts."

"Here take these." Sam stretched his arm forward to reveal two small white pills resting on the palm of his hand.

"What are they?"

"They'll help with the headache."

Dean popped the pills into his mouth and took the offered glass of water all the time warily watching his brother, something was off with Sam, he wasn't acting normal, well normal for him that is. "You sure you're okay Sam? That friggin spirit didn't hurt you did it?"

"How's the head?"

"Gettin better." Dean frowned "Sam you sure you're okay?"

"No I'm not okay you fucking asshole." Sam leapt to his feet, the chair flying backwards as he rose.

"Sam…"

"Shut up Dean, for once in your life just shut the fuck up, I..." Sam turned and running trembling fingers through his hair took a few steps away from his brother before spinning around and striding back to the side of the bed Dean was lying on and continued.

"I am sick and tired of you treating me like some precious breakable object, you've always done it Dean and yes, before you say it I know it's only because you care, well guess what bro, I care too, I care what happens to you, I worry whenever we go on a hunt, hell I don't even sleep until it's over and the both of us are back in whatever shit hole of a motel we've had the misfortune to find but d'you know what really pisses me off, what really scares the shit outta me, it's you Dean, you seem to have some weird sense of duty, you seem to think that it's gotta be you who takes the brunt of it all, you who gets the crap knocked outta you time and time again, well I'm sick of it Dean and it's gonna stop and it's gonna stop right now, you're gonna promise me that from now on you're gonna be more careful, you're gonna let me help…"

"Sam…"

"Shut up Dean and listen, cuz you know what I can't take it anymore, I thought you were dead, in that crappy basement you were covered in blood and I thought you were dead, I thought I'd lost you again and I can't do that, not again, not ever, d'you have any idea how it feels to see you hurting, dying, I've been there Dean, too many times and I'm not doing it again so if you don't want to start watching out for yourself and won't let me watch your back then I'm gone, I'll walk out and I swear I won't ever come back, you will never see me again."

Sam straightened from leaning over his astonished and speechless brother and heaved in a lungful of air before turning and all but running from the room, nearly colliding with Bobby as he went, clattered down the stairs and stormed out of the front door, the resounding slam as he pulled it behind him practically shaking the buildings foundations.

Dean swung his legs off the bed and was about to rise when Bobby pushed him back down "Whoa there, where d'you think you're goin?"

"I gotta go after Sam he…" Dean started but was interrupted by Bobby.

"I know, I heard, hell it was hard not to."

"You heard and you still let him go knowing the state he's in, you shoulda stopped him Bobby." Dean once again tried to rise but was again pushed back down.

"He needed to get that off his chest, it's been brewing for a long time and you know what son, he's right, you do always use yourself as a shield to stop anything gettin to him. Jus leave him be for an hour or so, he needs to calm down, you ain't gonna get any sense outta him whilst he's still so riled up." Bobby searched the young hunters face.

"I can't just leave him Bobby; anything could happen to him, I have to find him."

Bobby took Dean's arm and carefully helped him to his feet "C'mere" he guided the injured young man slowly to the window "See that mound of scrap over there? Just watch carefully."

Sure enough as Dean watched he could see clouds of dust billowing around the side of the heap of rusted metal.

"Sam's safe, he's just outside, he aint goin nowhere, give him time to cool down and then go see him, talk it out, ok."

Dean continued to watch and could imagine his brother pacing backwards and forwards, as he walked off his anger "Okay, I'll wait, but only as long as I can see him."

Pausing on his way out of the room Bobby repeated the words he'd used earlier whilst talking to Sam "I've got stuff to do, just holler if yer need me."

"I will, thanks Bobby." Dean's eyes remained glued to the window even as he spoke leaving Bobby rolling his eyes and reminding himself to be vigilant in making sure that 'the damn stubborn ass' lyin in the bed didn't try to sneak out once his back was turned.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Seven minutes and thirteen seconds is how long Dean lasted before he could stand it no longer, he had to speak to Sam, make sure the kid was okay so, still sitting up in bed he craned his neck and listened carefully for any signs of Bobby moving around downstairs, a triumphant smile crossing his face as his ears failed to pick up any indication of movement, 'Bobby must be out back' he thought as he swung his legs around and placed his feet on the threadbare carpet before pushing himself upright and taking a tentative step towards the door. 'Whoa' he grabbed a hold of the back of a chair and blinked slowly for a couple of minutes in an effort to stop the room spinning. Once he was sure he could make it out of the door and down the stairs he continued forward, purposefully ignoring the hammering inside his skull and the feeling of nausea as sweat beaded on his forehead before dripping down his face, the droplets blurring his vision.

Undeterred Dean continued on his quest to make things right with his little brother and found himself leaning against the post at the bottom of the porch steps with no recollection of how he'd gotten there 'but no matter, nearly there' he thought to himself as he pushed himself forward, his sight set on the still billowing dust clouds.

Dean was almost within reaching distance of the pile of scrap metal standing between him and Sam when he knew he couldn't go any further, could feel the strength leave his body as legs at first trembled and then wobbled, dancing black spots obscured his vision as Bobby's salvage yard seemed to spin around him, he could feel himself falling forward and the part of his mind that was still coherent knew his body was seconds away from slamming into the cold, hard, unforgiving ground.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Slamming the front door behind him Sam had no idea where he was going, he just knew he had to get away as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him, his fear at seeing Dean covered in blood bringing back the memories of that night, the night he'd relived so many times, the night his brother had been torn to shreds right in front of him, as the light had left his eyes, as he'd taken his last breath before his soul had been hurtled into the pits of hell and there was nothing Sam could do to stop it.

Finding himself standing behind one of the multitude of piles of scrap metal Bobby had littered about the yard Sam began to pace as the images of that night relentlessly flashed before his eyes. He saw himself fall to his knees beside his brother and cradle the lifeless body in his arms as tears rained from his eyes, he saw Bobby appear on the opposite side of Dean's torn and bloody body, the older mans tears only driving home that this was real, Dean was gone and he wasn't coming back, he was in hell and there was nothing Sam could do about it.

Sam stared ahead as the images of him cleaning his brothers body, dressing him in clean clothes, digging a grave and lowering the only family he had left into the cold, dark, damp hole before shovelling the earth onto the body until all that was left of his brother was a mound of dirt on an isolated patch of land.

Sam gulped down a sob as he remembered making the simple wooden cross that marked Dean's grave and how he had stayed with his brother the whole night until Bobby had arrived and guided his trance like self back to the impala before driving them both to his place.

Continuing to pace Sam relived Dean's return and didn't even try to stem the tears as he once again thanked whoever was listening for giving him his brother back before his anger once again rose as he recalled the numerous hunts they'd been on where Dean had thrown himself into the line of fire either by taunting whatever it was they were hunting or simply pushing Sam out of the way leaving himself as an unmissable target.

Alternating between wanting to knock some sense into his siblings thick head and wanting to wrap him in cotton wool Sam's pacing eased a little as he thought about his earlier outburst and although he meant every word he'd said, well almost, there was no way he'd abandon his brother no matter what. He began to feel guilty for losing his temper like he had, after all Dean was injured.

Having made the decision to return to the house and talk to Dean Sam stepped out from behind the pile of scrap and for a moment thought his eyes were playing tricks on him before his brain processed what he was seeing.

He launched himself forward, reaching his brother seconds before the injured hunter crashed to the ground and managed to save his stubborn, stupid jerk of a sibling from further injury.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Eyes closed as he readied himself for the impact Dean peeked out of one eye as instead of slamming face first into the dirt he found himself held against the familiar warmth of his brother's muscular chest.

"S a m…"

"What the hell did you think you were doing Dean?"

"Wanted to see you. You okay?" Dean quietly breathed the words.

"Dean, it's not me who has a concussion you stupid jerk, c'mon, let's get you back inside."

"No!"

Sam watched amazed as his brother pulled his body free and rolled himself to his knees where he sat for a few seconds before slowly, agonisingly staggering to his feet. "Dean, c'mon man, you need to rest."

"I'm sorry Sam."

"We don't have to do this now, here."

"Yeah Sam, we do."

Knowing that there was no way his brother was going anywhere until he'd accomplished what he'd set out to do Sam shook his head before taking Dean's arm and leading him to sit on a pile of old tyres.

"I shouldn'tve said what I did Dean, there's no way I'm gonna leave, you know that right? I was angry and it just came out." Sam knew that his brother would've latched onto that one part of his earlier rant more than anything else and wanted to reassure him that it wasn't ever going to happen.

"I can't help it, I can't help being the way I am and I know that I piss you off more often than not but it's j…"

Sam couldn't believe what he was hearing and jumped right in before Dean had the chance to continue "No Dean, stop, you do not piss me off, okay sometimes you do but sometimes I piss you off, it's a two way street man, we're brothers, we're supposed to do that to each other, hell we're with each other practically twenty-four-seven, spend hours cramped in the impala or in a motel room, we eat together, do our laundry together, watch tv together." Sam sighed "What I'm trying to say is, this is our life Dean, not your life, **ours** and I just want you to let me take some of the crap off of your shoulders, you don't have to do it all, you don't have to protect me, look after me. We should be looking out for each other; all I want Dean is for you to stop throwing yourself in front of anything you think may be a threat, you don't need to shield me and before you say it, I know what dad expected from you whilst we were growing up and although I do understand how he felt, he was wrong, there's no way he should have heaped what he did onto you, dammit Dean, for as long as I can remember you've always taken care of me and I, I love you for it." Sam lowered his head and peeked at his brother through floppy bangs before continuing "Let me help." Sam finished speaking and once again lowered his eyes.

Dean watched his brother and couldn't help the small smirk as the kid's eyes fixated on his shuffling feet, it was a classic Sammy trait, say what you've gotta say and then wait for the outcome by looking anywhere but at him and then the smirk fell away as he processed all that his brother had said.

"Okay."

Sam raised his head to look directly at his brother "Okay? Is that it, okay?"

"What do you want me to say Sam? You're right and I know it it's just that its hard y'know, after all these years, it's hard to change but I hear what you're sayin and I will try."

"That's all I'm asking for Dean."

"And just for the record I do know how it feels to watch your brother die."

Silence surrounded the two of them as those words hung in the air until it was broken by the sound of running footsteps.

"Thought I'd find you out here damn stubborn idjit." Bobby directed his gaze towards Dean.

"Yeah sorry Bobby I just really needed to speak with Sam" Dean looked toward his brother "but we're good now."

Sam returned the look "Yeah, we're good" before turning his attention to the agitated older hunter "Somethin wrong Bobby?"

"Yeah, somthin's wrong. I just had a call from a friend of mine, a hunter, he's in the hospital, had his legs ripped off his body."

"What!" Sam and Dean asked in unison.

"He was on a hunt in some woods not too far from here when he and his partner were attacked, his partner didn't make it, in fact the only reason Ray made it is because his partner attacked the creature, distracted it so Ray could make his escape, unfortunately the other guy wasn't so lucky." Bobby explained.

"What attacked them?" Sam asked as he gripped his brother's arm and began walking towards the house.

"I'll explain when we get inside." Bobby glanced worriedly at Dean before striding ahead.

Sam also glanced at his brother not having failed to notice that apart from the initial shock at what had happened to Bobby's friend Dean had remained quiet which was unlike him, usually Dean would want to know everything, places, dates, times, what they were dealing with and how to kill it but right here right now he remained silent.

"Hey, you okay in there." Sam questioned his brother with a small smile.

"Yeah Sammy, I'm okay, just thinking is all" and then after a beat "I meant what I said; I will try Sam I promise."

"I know you will Dean, c'mon lets get inside and see what's goin on with this thing."

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Whatever it is it's a nasty sonovabitch that's fer sure. I remember your daddy and me hunted this thing over fifteen years ago, coulda sworn we'd ended it, salted and burned the damn thing, hell we stood side by side and watched it burn so either this things not destroyed by fire or there was more'n one of em."

"What was it Bobby?" Sam asked.

Pausing to look at the two boys in front of him Bobby swept a hand across his face as he told them all he could remember about the creature and what it did to its victims. "I don't rightly know what you'd call it but it was a huge mother, as tall as it was wide and covered in blue/green scales and coarse hair, it had a huge wide mouth, its razor sharp teeth protruding over the lips and the most horrendous looking talons on each of its four feet as I've ever seen.

Thing is, and this is where it gets even more weird" Bobby paused before continuing "somehow this thing creeps up on its prey unnoticed, I mean a thing that size you'd think it was impossible but as sure as I'm standin here your daddy and I were alone one minute and the next, without warning were confronted by this thing but we were ready and managed to take it down without it harming us too much, your daddy did take a hit to the head but nothing too serious. We brought it down, filled it with silver, rock salt, lead, holy water the lot, you name it, we pumped it into the damn thing, watched as it bled the weirdest lookin blood I've ever seen but still the damn thing survived, it was hurt but right before our eyes we watched as its injuries healed themselves. Knowing we had to act quick we poured petrol over it and set it alight after which it simply burned, didn't make a sound, just burned into nothing more'n a pile of ash. We watched it burn." Bobby shook his head "I don't get how it can be back, no it can't be back, there must be another one." He spoke as if to himself.

"Were there ever any witnesses to the attacks?" Dean asked, causing Sam to smile in relief that his brother was back.

"Only a handful" Bobby began "Over the years more'n forty, fifty people musta gone missin but only four survived and out of those four one committed suicide as soon as he was released from hospital and the other three were declared insane and placed in a sanatorium for their own safety but your daddy and me did manage to speak to all three of them."

"What did they say?" The Winchester brothers asked in unison.

"All of em reported seeing a man, like a preacher man immediately before they were attacked and went on to explain that before the creature was let loose on them this preacher man would kneel before them and beg that they be forgiven their sins before they were subjected to some kind of trial, that their whole lives would play out in front of their eyes like a picture show, that they were able to speak with relatives and friends who had passed on but these family and friends would always be hostile, would spit venomous accusations before they seemingly turned to the preacher and asked that whoever it was standing before them be put to death in the most horrendous manner imaginable and that is where the creature would make its entrance, it would swoop in as if from nowhere and play with its prey until agonised cries begging for death could be heard echoing around the woods and then with a final swoop the internal organs of the poor victim were ripped out of the body, the creature feasting on them even as the poor soul they belonged to watched before the luxury of death took them, that's how most of the victims died but occasionally the preacher would apparently decide that another form of death be more suitable, no one was able to tell us what exactly happened to those who were spared the creature but one thing's fer sure, none of em were ever seen again after having been dragged semi conscious from what sounds like a makeshift courtroom."

"Okay, which woods exactly? Sam and I can head out there and finish what you and dad started." Dean was already beginning to rise.

Sam gently placed a restraining hand on his brother's shoulder as Bobby began to speak.

"You aint goin nowhere the state your in boy, and you certainly aint goin in there without having done some decent research so sit back, get yerself back ter whatever passes for normal with you boys whilst Sam and I look into it and then if and only if I think its safe enough, you and yer brother can head out to see what you can find but you have to keep in close contact with me at all times, I'm gonna have a backup of hunters I know who will come in at a moments notice to get you boys outta there if I think you need it."

"A backup of hunters. Who? Do we know them? Can we trust them?" Dean questioned.

"D'you really think I'd call for help from hunters I don't know or trust. I managed to get a hold of Joshua who's gonna be bringing along a coupla guys he's been workin with these past two years or so." Bobby held Dean's gaze until the younger man spoke.

"Sorry Bobby, I didn't mean anything by it.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

By lunchtime the next day Sam and Dean were throwing their rucksacks into the impala and checking their weapons in the trunk. Satisfied that they had everything they needed the two of them gave a wave to Bobby as the car pealed out of the scrap yard, the older mans advice ringing in their ears.

"Remember, this is a nasty bastard, don't go takin any unnecessary risks." Bobby looked pointedly at Dean before switching his gaze to Sam.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Climbing out of the car and stretching, the muscles in his back popping Sam looked at the sight before him, masses and masses of trees, so dense you could hardly see between them "Guess this is the place then huh." He looked over the top of the car at his brother.

"Guess so. You ready for this?"

"Ready, and remember Dean, don't do anything stupid, remember what Bobby told us and what the research pulled up, as long as we stay together, keep a fire lit wherever we set up camp and don't make our move too soon we should be okay to finish this, hopefully without having to call on Bobby's hunter friends and be back at his place in time for dinner tomorrow night."

Dean merely nodded his agreement, to be truthful he still wasn't feeling a hundred per cent and would let Sam take the lead even though it went against everything he'd had instilled in him his whole life. "So how you wanna do this?"

"We go in, keep walking until we come to the ravine Bobby mentioned then we set up camp and wait as that's where most of the attacks seem to have happened." Sam gave his brother one final look before grabbing a hold of his rucksack and heading off into the woods knowing Dean was right behind him.

They'd been walking for about ninety minutes when Sam noticed the trees thinning a little allowing him to just make out the edge of the ravine they were heading towards and turned his head to let his brother know they were nearly there when the breath caught in his throat. Walking directly behind Dean, a smile on its face was a man, or what used to be a man, its face almost transparent. The figure was dressed totally in black with the exception of a white collar indicating he was a man of the church; it had to be the preacher Bobby had mentioned. Swinging his body around Sam had his shotgun filled with rocksalt up and ready to shoot but his brother was directly in his line of fire.

Before Sam even had time to shout a warning to his brother the preacher man raised one of his hands, razor sharp talons erupting from the tips of his fingers before sweeping his arm down towards Dean's back.

Sam's scream of "**NO**" echoed around the woods.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Preacher**

**I feel I should point out that this story was completely written before the fabulous Dark Side Of The Moon aired on tv so any similarities are entirely coincidental.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**This chapter is a little shorter than the previous one but it was just the perfect place to end it. Hope you enjoy it.**

**Chapter Two**

"Dean, drop."

Without missing a beat Dean threw himself to the ground, the blast of the shotgun ringing out even before he hit the floor.

"Dean, are you hurt?" Sam rushed to kneel beside his brother.

"What was that?"

"The preacher, he was right behind you."

After helping his brother to his feet Sam once again led the way towards the ravine, filling his brother on what he'd seen as they went, his heart hammering at the thought of what just very nearly happened.

"You mean it was right behind me? No way Sam, no way, I'da felt it." Dean scanned the surrounding area as he spoke.

"Dean I'm tellin you, that freaky preacher man was right behind you and he had these, these, hands…"

"Wow Sammy, he had hands, that's really unusual, specially for a preacher man…" Dean interrupted, smirking at his brother's impatient expression.

"If you'll let me finish smartass, the hands were" Sam paused "different."

"Whaddya mean, different?"

"Well at first they were just regular hands, well regular except that they belonged to a spirit and I could kinda see right through em…"

"Sam will ya just get to the point, at this rate we're gonna be here all day and I'm gonna have to call Bobby to come and save you from the driven insane older brother."

Cheeks reddening Sam huffed before continuing "As he or it raised the hand these really long, sharp claw like things shot out of the fingertips and they were headed straight for your head and back and I'm tellin ya Dean, if they'd made contact there'd a bin bits and pieces a you all over the place."

Both lost in their own thoughts but keeping a close eye on their surroundings Sam and Dean continued in silence until they reached the clearing signifying their arrival at the ravine.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

On arrival at their destination Sam and Dean went about setting up their camp which consisted of a small fire, a wide line of salt encircling them, several bowls of holy water spaced around the inner circle and their weapons close by but hidden from view under a pile of leaves and twigs.

Conscious that his brother had been recently injured Sam wanted Dean to get some rest after the long drive not to mention the hike through the woods.

"Dean, why don't you try and get some sleep, I'll keep first watch." Sam offered.

"Don't you think maybe we should look around, see if we can find any sign of the victims, or the preacher and his pet." Dean moved towards the edge of the salt circle as he spoke, his eyes straining to see over the edge of the ravine.

"No Dean, I think we should get some rest, recharge the batteries before we try anything coz if what Bobby says is true then we need to be ready and seeing as I slept in the car it's only fair that you should get the first rest break.

"What you gonna do while I sleep?" Dean questioned.

"I'm just gonna stay right here, keeping watch and thinkin up a plan."

"You're not gonna wander off or anything?" Dean questioned.

"No Dean, I'm not gonna wander off, I'll be right here" Sam paused before tentatively broaching the subject of his meltdown the previous day "remember Dean, remember what you promised…"

Unwilling to go there again Dean quickly cut in "Yeah, I remember, just make sure you don't go outside the circle." Dean then lay on the ground, his rucksack a makeshift pillow and closed his eyes.

Sam watched his brother and was stunned to see just how quickly Dean's breathing evened revealing that he was already asleep. Sam knew his brother really was in dreamland and wasn't pretending, he'd lived with him for long enough to know when he was putting on a show but decided that Dean really didn't need to know that, it was helpful for Sam to know when his brother had gone without sleep, it meant he could surreptitiously ensure the two of them took it a little easier than usual.

Lost in his thoughts as his brother slept Sam slowly became aware of a voice repeatedly whispering his name. He stood and turned full circle but couldn't see anyone, a rustling behind him had him spinning, shotgun at the ready but seeing his brother changing position as he slept Sam lowered the gun and returned to his original position, the breath catching in his throat as his eyes landed on the smiling face of the very same spirit he'd encountered as he and Dean trekked through the thick trees.

"You won't need that Sam, I'm not here to hurt **you**."

A shiver ran up Sam's spine at the emphasis the spirit put on the word **you**. Keeping his voice low and fighting to control his fear he replied "What does that mean?"

"I know how you feel about **him**, really feel, not just what you show everyone else, I know what's deep inside of you and it's okay to feel like that Sam, it's normal, but eventually it'll eat you up if you don't deal with it." The preacher's sympathetic, gentle tone having a hypnotic effect on the young hunter.

Fighting to stay in control Sam slowly shook his head "You don't know."

"Oh but I do Sam, I know all too well. It's always the same, they come through here, the people, try to bury their innermost feelings but it doesn't work, eventually they crack and that's where I come in, I save them Sam, save them from themselves, I take care of the problem for them and then take away the guilt of what they wanted to do themselves but were too weak." The preacher continued.

"You torture and kill them, how's that helping." Sam could feel his eyelids growing heavier and heavier.

"There's always a price to pay for services rendered and that is mine, I get to indulge me and mine."

"Indulge me you bastard." A loud blast sounded from behind him pulling Sam out of the stupor he was falling into.

"Sam you okay?"

Blinking rapidly Sam's eyes landed on his brother's face just inches from his own, he could feel the strong familiar hands resting one on each cheek and suddenly, from nowhere wanted to simply cry.

Instead of giving into the tears Sam fought them back, grasped his brother's forearms and simply nodded his head his choked whispered words barely audible.

"M'fine Dean."

"You sure?" Dean continued "Did it hurt you?"

"No, I'm fine, really, I'm fine." Sam reluctantly pushed away from his brother when all he really wanted to do was stay close to Dean, the spirits words leaving a chill deep inside of him and a knawing fear in the pit of his stomach.

Stepping back to let Sam rise Dean turned full circle to make sure they were alone before once again turning to his obviously spooked younger brother. "What did it say, I heard some of it, didn't sound too good."

"I know what it's doing, why it's killing people." Sam indicated they sit before continuing "It thinks it's doing good work, saving a person from killing the other, at least that's what it said. It seems to be able to determine whether there's been any" Sam paused as he searched for the right word "misunderstandings, tension, arguments or whatever you want to call it between its victims."

"Yeah well, god save us from do-gooders like the freaky preacher, I tell you Sam I can't wait to toast that bastard." The fear in Dean at seeing that thing so close to his brother fuelling his need to get this hunt underway and completed in the shortest time possible.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

The rest of the day and following night passed without incident although Dean noticed that Sam never strayed further than an arms length away from him and that was just fine with him, he was gonna make sure that thing didn't get anywhere near his brother again that was for sure.

"You ready?" Sam looked to his brother for confirmation before stepping over the salt line, shotgun raised and ready whilst Dean did the same, then they set off for the edge of the nearby ravine to look for any remains or the slim possibility of survivors.

"Damn that's deep." Dean stood on the edge and looked down.

"Don't get too close to the edge." Sam pressed a hand to Dean's chest, pushing him back a couple of steps "We don't know how firm the ground is."

"Whaddya say we get started on this thing." Dean fished around in his backpack before producing the book of rituals that Bobby had insisted held the best chance they had of sending this thing into oblivion. Even though they knew they were dealing with a spirit it wasn't just any ordinary spirit, for one there was the creature they'd yet to see to contend with and then, coupled with that was the preacher himself, they had to find whatever it was that was holding him here and get rid of it whilst being on the lookout for any unplanned visits from either of the aforementioned and the ravine was the most logical place to begin as that is the spot that each of the survivors had mentioned when recalling the horrific details of their visit to these woods.

Sam lifted the binoculars hanging around his neck and after adjusting the focus on them began to scan the bottom of the ravine leaving Dean to keep watch.

"What if can't find anything…" Sam's words were abruptly cut off.

Dean who'd been checking behind him began to turn as his brother spoke but couldn't move his feet fast enough, it was as though he was wading through wet cement, the sound of something approaching overhead, the shadow it cast engulfing him in semi darkness had him struggling with everything he had to move but still he could do no more than shuffle, the sound of, 'what did it sound like, wings, shit, it was the fucking creature' his mind screamed as the realisation of what it was struck home.

"**SAM…SAMMY…RUN…FOR GODS SAKE RUN…SAMMY**." Dean shouted at the top of his voice whilst continuing the struggle to break free.

Without warning Dean's feet broke free of the invisible hold sending him crashing to the floor with the momentum of his struggles. Still gripping his shotgun he rolled over, scrambled to his knees and and raised the gun just in time to see an enormous winged, feathered creature swoop, sink its talons into his brothers shoulders and then soar skywards, a struggling Sam screaming for him to do something.

Adrenaline took over and Dean raised the shotgun, pulled the trigger and ran, following the path the creature was taking even as the shot rang out; firing off another round Dean continued to run, replacing cartridges with the expertise and skill of someone who'd been around weapons his whole life.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Sam, who'd been so engrossed in his search of the bottom of the ravine, had been unaware that anything untoward was taking place until his words to his brother were abruptly cut off as the breath was sucked out of his body in shock as something sharp embedded itself into his shoulders and his feet left the ground.

He could see Dean below him, his back to him and shouted, screamed for help but for some reason his brother didn't react, didn't move. He continued to shout for his brother even as his face and body were battered by branches as he rose into the air, he could feel the warm stickiness of blood raining from the puncture wounds on his shoulders where the creatures claws dug into flesh and then hope soared, his brother was running, firing shot after shot at his captor but the creature picked up speed and Dean's running figure became smaller and smaller until he was little more than a moving speck barely visible through the trees.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

He was losing sight of his brother, the creature had picked up speed and didn't have the obstacle of trees obscuring its vision or massive roots to negotiate, it was getting away and it had Sam, it had his little brother and try as he might Dean could not keep up with it. He watched as it became nothing more than a fast moving speck in the sky before it completely disappeared from view.

Falling to his knees, face still turned upwards Dean once again shouted his brother's name before his body sagged as desolation overtook him. Tears welled before spilling over and trailing down his face as the enormity of what had just happened slammed into him again and again.

"**NO! NO you can't have him you bastard, I want him back." **With renewed determination and pushing thoughts of anything but finding his brother alive out of his mind Dean set off at a run, shotgun in hand, eyes searching both sky and ground as he ran.

Stopping to take catch his breath Dean pulled a bottle of water out of his pocket as he leaned against a tree and after taking a couple of long gulps screwed the cap back on and readied himself to continue the hunt for his brother. As he pushed away from the tree he felt a stickiness on his hand and brought it closer to his face.

His palm was covered in a light blue, transparent goo of some kind. Looking further up the tree Dean could see blobs of the same goo dripping down the trunk. He moved to the next tree and found the same, and on the next and the next.

"Well waddya know, I got myself a trail to follow." He whispered without humour.

Tree after tree he followed, the goo getting more and more the further he went until he came to a small clearing the opposite side of which was lined with a mountainous rock-face which was obviously where the woods ended and on the other side civilisation began. Dean could imagine the day to day life taking place beyond the huge edifice and wanted more than anything right now for him and Sam to be a part of it.

Sure he would find his brother in one of the many small openings which most likely led to caves Dean cautiously took a step into the open, he looked around him and when he was sure he was alone broke into a jog, not stopping until he reached the first of the outcroppings where he checked his shotgun, patted his pocket to reassure himself that the holy water was where it should be and made to step forward, into the gloomy cave.

"Hang on Sammy, I'm gonna get you out of here." Dean spoke to himself quietly as he took the first step into the dark.

"And how do you think you're going to manage that Dean?"

Dean spun as the voice sounded behind him and came face to face with the preacher man.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Preacher**

**I feel I should point out that this story was completely written before the fabulous Dark Side Of The Moon aired on tv so any similarities are entirely coincidental.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Chapter Three**

"Put the shotgun down child, it's of no use to you right now." The preacher nodded towards the weapon Dean had instinctively raised.

"Oh yeah, well lets just see about that shall we." Dean spat as he pulled the trigger.

The preacher's spirit didn't waver, he remained standing directly in front of Dean, the condescending smile still lining his face "I did try to tell you your weapon would have no effect but you wouldn't listen, as usual Dean Winchester thinks he knows best. You know son, it's not a good personality trait to ignore advice, particularly when it's good advice, like now for instance."

"Where's my brother, I want him back right now and he better not be hurt or believe me you're gonna see a side of my personality that you couldn't even begin to imagine." Dean's glare as he growled the words belied the fear that was coursing through him at the preacher's immunity to the rock salt.

"Your brother's just in there" the preacher pointed towards the opening of the cave "go get him Dean. It was never my intention to separate the two of you, I know how much he means to you, it's just a shame that he doesn't feel the same about **his** brother but that's the way of the world I suppose." The preacher took a step back as he finished speaking.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh I'm sorry, did I say that aloud, take no notice of an old man, sometimes I forget myself. Go get your brother Dean, he needs you right now."

"And you're just gonna let me walk in there and take him."

"Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"Then why d'you take him in the first place." Dean shot back.

"I didn't take your brother, it was my associate, who acted entirely without my consent and has been dealt with accordingly so please Dean, forgive us and go to your brother." The preacher faded from view as he finished speaking leaving Dean alone at the mouth of the cave.

Directing the beam from the flashlight around the opening of the cave Dean took the first tentative steps into the darkness, his eyes at first straining in the dim light but soon becoming accustomed to the gloom "Sammy, Sammy you in here" he called, stopping to listen for any sign of his brother.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Dean." The word tumbled from Sam's lips as he fought his way through the fog to consciousness. Blinking to clear his vision Sam peered through the dark in an effort to establish where he was.

The last thing Sam remembered was soaring up and through the trees of the woods as the talons of the creature gripped him tight, as his brother hurtled along the ground in a vain attempt to keep up with his winged captive and then nothing, everything went dark until a few moments ago when he awoke here, in some kind of cave.

Sam attempted to stand but made it no further than his knees before he fell back against the wall as a myriad of pain lanced across his shoulders and down his back causing his breath to come in short sharp pants and sweat to break out on seemingly every part of his body.

He didn't know how long he'd been sitting here, waiting for the pain to subside, for the fire burning his body to abate, for some way to get out of here and was becoming increasingly desperate to see his brother, to know that Dean was okay. Sam knew that Dean still wasn't back to one hundred percent after their last hunt and knew his brother would be tearing the woods apart looking for him.

Trying again to get his body to obey his minds command to move Sam grimaced as he struggled to his knees once again before he once again fell backwards, his body impacting with the cold, hard stone wall, a string of expletives issuing from his mouth; and then he heard it, the most welcome sound he'd ever heard.

"Sammy, Sammy you in here?"

"D e a n" he groaned before clearing his throat and forcing a little more power to his voice repeated "**Dean."**

Within seconds Sam's face was bathed in the beam of the flashlight, a shadowy outline rushed toward him until he could clearly see the familiar features of his big brother.

"Sammy thank god." Dean gasped as he placed comforting hands on either side of Sam's face. "Are you hurt?" As soon as the words fell from his lips Dean could've kicked himself, of course the kid was hurt, he'd been plucked from the ground, whisked up and through the trees, flown through the sky and deposited in a cave.

"M'kay Dean." Sam whispered.

"You always were a bad liar Sam, c'mon let's get you outta here." Dean grasped his brother's forearms, cursing at the heat radiating off of his brother and attempted to lift him but slowly released his grip at the gasp of pain issued from the kid.

"S'okay Dean, try again, I can do it." Sam's voice slurred.

"Uhuh, I don't think so kiddo, there's only one way you're gettin outta here" and then without warning Dean pulled his brother forward, fighting to ignore the cries of pain and hefted him over his shoulder before slowly straightening his knees and cautiously making his way out of the darkness and into the early evening light.

As he stepped out of the mouth of the cave Dean knew his brother had lost the fight to stay conscious as his body went limp and the weight he was carrying increased but he was just happy Sammy had managed to stay aware long enough to be found.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"At last" Dean breathed a sigh of relief as he finally laid his precious but heavy cargo on the ground within the circle of salt at their camp site.

Kneeling beside his brother Dean got his first proper view of the injuries an unconscious Sam had sustained and cursed at the dried blood and obvious gouges clearly visible on each shoulder even through his brothers crimson stained clothing.

"Right, better to do this whilst you're out of it sunshine." Dean began the difficult task of removing the clothing from Sam's upper body and let out a string of expletives as the sight of his brother's injuries assaulted his eyes. The skin on the shoulders was a rainbow of blues, greens, yellows and reds with rivers of white puss seeping out of six deep puncture wounds, three on each shoulder.

"God dammit you bastards I'm gonna fry you for this." Dean hollered to the surrounding woods.

Returning his attention to his brother Dean lit a small fire before using some of the water out of their store of drinking bottles to initially clean the wound before bracing himself for the next step, a step he really didn't want to take, knowing how much agony it would inflict on his brother but also knowing that it was the only way he had to fight the infection which was obviously coursing through Sam's body.

Delaying the inevitable for as long as possible Dean busied himself with threading a needle and putting it to one side in readiness for the time when he would possibly have to stitch the wounds.

Knowing he had to do it now Dean pulled the flask of holy water out of his jacket pocket and placed it on the ground beside him before scooting back a little and levering his brothers torso up and onto his lap before pulling the unconscious young man further up until he was able to get his arms around him and for a moment or two simply held onto the kid, dreading what he was about to do but knowing there was no other option.

"Sorry Sammy" he whispered as he unscrewed the lid from the small silver flask before tilting it and letting the blessed water pour into the still weeping open wounds.

The reaction of the unconscious young hunter was immediate, as soon as the holy water made contact with bare flesh it sizzled and scorched it's way through the infected wounds causing Sam to rear back, his arms flailing and body bucking in an attempt to escape the agony coursing through him but Dean held on tight, continued to whisper encouraging murmurings to his brother until once again he had to watch as the kid succumbed to the blessed release of unconsciousness.

Sure that his brother would remain still Dean released his grip and scooted out from behind Sam, gently laying the young man straight chanting the same two words repeatedly "sorry Sammy" whilst he readied himself for the next step, cauterizing the wounds.

Although Sam struggled whilst Dean cauterized the deep gouges it was nothing compared to when the holy water was administered and nothing Dean couldn't cope with easily.

With that job done Dean sat back and waited, waited for Sam to wake so he could assess how strong a hold the infection had on his brother.

"Dean."

Hearing his name huskily whispered had Dean spinning from where he was tending the fire and rushing to his brother's side.

"Sammy, welcome back bro. How d'you feel?"

"Like I've been plucked from the ground by a giant fucking emu and dragged through the trees and across the skyline before being dumped in a cave." Sam croaked.

"Yep, that about covers it kiddo." Dean smirked as his brother squinted at him through half closed lids, relieved that Sam at least was coherent and could remember everything that'd happened. "No really Sam, how'd you feel."

"My head hurts, my shoulders hurt and I'm a little hot but apart from that, okay I guess."

"Here, take these" Dean handed his brother two pain pills and a bottle of water "they'll help with the pain and should bring your temperature down.

"Thanks Dean."

"You're welcome, after all there's only room for one hot guy around here and you're looking at him." Dean grinned.

Sam huffed but couldn't prevent his dimples making an appearance "Jerk."

"Bitch." Dean replied before pausing for a beat and leaning close to his brother peered directly into the younger mans eyes."

"Dean?" Sam questioned.

"How many fingers am I holding up."

"Dean I don't have a concussion."

"Maybe not but something's not right."

"Whaddya mean, I feel fine, considering."

"Emu."

"What?"

"You said Emu."

"So."

"Sammy, if you're seeing rogue emu's then…"

Sam rolled his eyes "Funny Dean."

"I thought so." Dean chuckled at the look of exasperation lining his brother's face.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"So how we gonna do this?" Dean looked to his brother.

"Well we know that rock salt or silver or lead or holy water and apparently salting and burning has no effect, the only thing which could change that is if we were able to read the ritual Bobby gave us whilst we were filling it full of whatever and salting and burning it." Sam looked expectantly at his brother.

"It's all we have left to try so count me in."

Dean checked their stock of salt and holy water before laying their weapons out whilst Sam pored over the ritual for what Dean thought must be the thousandth time, committing the words to memory.

"I say we move on it at first light." Dean looked to Sam for confirmation.

"Yeah, I guess we could both use a good night's sleep. I'll take first watch…" Sam's words were cut off as Dean interrupted.

"Nonono Sammy, you are gonna get some rest tonight, I'll keep watch."

"Dean I'm fine."

"I'm not saying you're not it's just you took first watch last night so it's only right I do it tonight, that's all." Dean finished.

Sam examined his brother's face for any sign that Dean was not being wholly truthful and was satisfied that it was nothing more than Dean taking his turn so conceded and after grabbing his duffle and placing it under his head as a pillow he turned onto his side and closed his eyes calling over his shoulder "Don't forget to wake me and don't go outside of the salt circle, night Dean."

"Night Sammy."

Dean kept his eyes on his brothers stretched out form and knew the moment he passed from wakefulness into sleep mode, a small sigh escaping his lips as the events of the day played out in front of his eyes.

Shaking the images away Dean sat upright, his eyes intermittently scanning the surrounding tree line for any sign of movement before returning to his brother and then the book of rituals Bobby had given them although it was becoming increasingly difficult to read the scrawled words as his eyes grew heavy and his body sagged.

A sharp crack had Dean's eyes springing open and his body upright as he squinted through the dark to identify what if anything was approaching, his lips curving into a smile as he spotted a rabbit hopping into the clearing and stopping directly in front of him, but still on the other side of the salt line.

"Hey there bunny, whatcha upto, you got a lady bunny waitin for you to bring home the bacon huh, wish I could help but I'm all outta carrots." Dean whispered to the fluffy creature before it skittered away as a hand fell on his shoulder causing him to catapult to his feet.

"Talkin to bunnies Dean!" Sam's grinning face greeted him.

"What you doin creepin up on me like that?"

"I wasn't creeping up on you I was merely coming to take my turn at keeping watch, blame the bunny." Sam chuckled.

"It's not funny Sam" Dean scowled at his brother "and anyway, it can't be time yet."

"It is" Sam paused before continuing "to both. Now go get a couple hours rest. No arguments."

"Okay, okay I'm goin" Dean moved back further into the circle before lying down and closing his eyes.

Sam sat behind the salt line silently running the ritual through his mind until he became aware of a soft voice calling his name. He looked back at his brother only to find him fast asleep and slowly turned around to once again face the tree line, knowing even before he did what he would see.

The preacher was sitting cross legged directly in front of him, no more than an inch from the salt line.

"Sam" the word was softly spoken "I just wanted to check you're alright after today's unfortunate incident."

Sam made to move but the preacher stopped him with his next words.

"I haven't come to hurt you Sam. There's no need to wake your brother, I know you want him to rest, that you're worried about him. I can help, that's all I want to do, help you understand what is troubling Dean, after all, he's not going to confide in you, he never does, he's not one to open up to anyone, he's going to continue to keep it all bottled up and eventually he'll crack, he won't be able to cope with the weight of it all.

Talk to me Sam, I really do only want what's best for the two of you."

Sam nodded, deep inside he knew he should tell the preacher to go to hell and then wake Dean as quickly as possible but there was something, he couldn't put his finger on what exactly, but there was something about the preacher and the tone of his voice that made him feel safe and he wanted to know what his brother was hiding from him so he nodded his consent for the spirit to continue.

The preacher stood, the smile dropping from his face and turned towards the tree line where he raised his hand and called out "It's safe to show yourself."

A rustling of leaves brought forth a young boy, no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, in the blink of an eye he was standing beside the preacher, his eyes resting on the cross legged form of Sam.

"He'll see me."

"Don't worry child, as far as Sam Winchester is concerned he is having a conversation with me and will continue in that state until I decide otherwise." The preacher reassured his companion.

"What about the other one?"

"Fear not my boy, he will remain asleep for as long as it is necessary. Now go, take a look at them, a good look, you will not have better opportunity to discover exactly what we are up against."

The young man stepped over the salt line as if it weren't there and sidestepping the trance-like Sam made his way over to the deeply sleeping Dean where he kneeled beside him and bent over, examining every contour of the face he had imagined for so many years, the face of the man who had ruined his life. He ran his fingers over the oblivious young hunter's skin and hair before standing upright and pulling his leg back slammed his foot into Dean's ribs, again and again and again before once again falling to his knees and driving a clenched fist into either side of the hated face, the immediately reddening skin giving instant satisfaction, the whole time recounting the story the preacher had told him of this very man's father coming into these woods and destroying his family so many years ago, unfortunately the man responsible for the atrocity had managed to escape, along with his accomplice before he was able to be brought to trial. "You shall not be so lucky." The kid muttered even as he once again viciously thrust a foot into the sleeping man's ribs "The sins of the father…"

"That is enough for now, after all you don't want to spoil the game; you do want your vengeance to be sweet don't you? If you continue in this way it will all be over within a matter of minutes and you deserve more, I want you to have more." The preacher pulled the young man away from the object of his anger.

"Yes, I want my revenge to be sweet but it's so hard to stop, I just want to inflict the agonies of the world on him, I want him to beg for a reprieve and then I want him to beg for death.

But you're right, as always your wisdom humbles me; I shall put this right." The young man then moved over to Sam and taking the large hands in his own he curled the hunters fingers closed until a fist had been formed and then rubbed the knuckles across the rough ground until they were red and beginning to bruise before wiping the dirt from them and replacing the hands and uncurled fingers to once again lay on Sam's knees."

Looking to the preacher and blushing under the proud scrutiny reflected in the beloved face the young man followed his mentor out of the circle and into the darkness of the surrounding trees.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"C'mon Dean, wake up." Sam called as he pulled himself upright, stamping his feet to get the circulation going after having sat cross legged during his watch.

The first thing Dean noticed when he tried to move was the sharp stabbing pain around his mid-section, the second, his head hurt like hell.

Thinking it must've been the position he'd slept in coupled with the fact he'd been lying on the cold hard ground for a few hours Dean tried to sit up, thinking he could stretch the kinks out once he was on his feet but fell back with a groan before he'd even managed to get as far as his knees, his breath coming in short, sharp pain filled gasps.

Hearing the unmistakeable sound of his brother in pain Sam spun around to see what was going on with Dean and rushed to his siblings side when it became obvious he wasn't gonna be getting up on his own anytime soon.

"Dean? What's goin on with you?" Sam fell to his knees. "God Dean, your face, it's covered in bruises."

"Hurts Sam." Dean's hand hovered over his stomach.

"Your stomach hurts?" Sam questioned.

"Everything."

"Okay, okay, I'm gonna take a look." Sam spoke quietly, his voice calm whilst inside his mind he screamed 'please don't let it be appendicitis, I won't be able to get him out fast enough, please don't let it be anything serious.'

Carefully peeling the layered clothing back Sam blinked in disbelief at the sight of Dean's discoloured torso "You're covered in bruises here too" he looked into his brothers eyes, flinching at the pain reflected in the green gaze.

"Bruises? Where'd I get bruises from?"

Sam mulled it over for a moment "Maybe you did it when you came after me; did you fall or, or crash into something?"

"N o."

Sam rubbed a hand across his forehead at a loss as to what had caused his brothers injuries.

"Help me up." Dean held a hand out to Sam.

"Maybe you should just stay there for a while, wait until the pain eases a little." Sam tried to persuade his brother even whilst knowing it'd be useless, there was no way Dean was going to comply.

"No, now are you gonna help me up or do I have to do it myself." Dean barked.

Sighing, Sam shook his head, "don't be an ass Dean, give me your arm."

Scrunching his eyes closed Dean prepared himself for the agony he knew was coming but still cried out as his body rose.

Once Sam had gotten his brother to a sitting position he scooted over to his duffle and fished out the small bottle of pain pills he'd brought along and shook two out into the palm of his hand before grabbing a bottle of water and rushing back to his brother's side.

"Here, take these, they'll help with the pain." Sam stretched his arm forward, palm open with the pills sitting in the centre.

"Thanks Sam." Dean swallowed the pills and waited for them to kick in.

Twenty minutes later and still in pain but able to at least move now Dean ventured a look at his injuries, cursing when he saw the mottled skin, 'what the hell.'

"Here, I got you some more water." Sam held the bottle out to Dean.

"Thanks Sammy" Dean looked up and reached out to take the bottle from his brother when he noticed the bruises on Sam's knuckles. "How d'you do that?" Dean nodded to the red skin on his brother's hand.

"Do what?" Sam looked questioningly at Dean.

"That Sam." Dean inclined his head toward the bruised hand.

Sam pulled his hand up; a look of confusion etched on his face as he took in the marks that he knew hadn't been there a few hours earlier. "I don't know." He looked at Dean and knew what was going through his brother's mind.

"You're kidding right! You don't really think I did this to you?" Sam's voice was incredulous.

"You tell me Sam. I go to sleep fine and wake up covered in bruises and find you with swollen and bruised knuckles. What am I supposed to think?" Dean accused.

"Screw you Dean. I wouldn't do that, you know I wouldn't, how could you think that." Sam turned away and strode to the furthest point away from his brother he could get to without actually crossing the salt line leaving Dean looking at his retreating back and knowing deep down that Sam hadn't attacked him but unable to find his voice to speak the words.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"It's going well my boy, better than I could ever have hoped and it's all thanks to you." The preacher smiled down on the young man and placing a loving arm across his shoulders urged him further back into the trees in order that they wouldn't be spotted by the warring brothers sent to destroy them.

'No one has ever gotten the better of me and you two will be no different.' The preacher smiled as he muttered the words to no-one in particular, his mind filled with images of the youngest of the two and the powerful vibe he'd given off and practically salivated at the work the boy could do for him.

He dismissed the older of the two as nothing more than an irritation to be dealt with.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry this chapters once again a little short but it really was the perfect place to end it.

**Chapter Four**

"I know it wasn't you."

Sam spun around to glare at his brother "What! What the hell was that all about if you knew it wasn't me?"

"I can't explain it Sam, the thought just came into my head from fuck knows where and I couldn't stop myself, I tried not to say it, tried really hard but then this, this thing flashed through my head and it was as though I had no choice, I couldn't stop what came out of my mouth even though I knew it was the biggest load of crap I've ever spouted." Dean fidgeted with the hem of his shirt as he spoke.

Frowning, Sam slowly walked towards his obviously contrite brother "What d'you mean you couldn't stop it?"

"Just that; I couldn't stop it."

Both boys remained silent for a few moments, Sam having sat next to Dean, shoulders brushing before simultaneously swinging their heads around to face each other and mouthing in synch "The preacher."

"That sonuvabitch, I swear I am gonna enjoy sending that bastard back to whatever hell he crawled out of and I am gonna enjoy every fucking minute of it, no one, be it human, spirit, demon or any other fucking dumb ass is gonna get away with messing with my family, and that includes you" Dean raised his voice as he turned his attention to the surrounding trees "**freaky ass preacher.**"

"You done?" Sam grinned at his brother's rant, glad that at least Dean was feeling well enough to vent his anger.

"No Sam I'm not done, I haven't even begun to be done yet, now c'mon we got a preacher to hunt." Forgetting about his injuries Dean sprang up only for his knees to buckle as the pain from his ribs jolted his entire body, reminding him that he had to take things a little slower for the time being.

"Whoa, steady there Dean." Sam quickly held onto his brother to stop him from crashing to the ground and further injuring himself.

"I'm good." Dean shrugged off his brother's support.

"We have to be extra careful Dean, if he got inside your head once he can do it again, we have to watch each other's backs, if either one of us thinks the other is behaving a little strange" Sam chuckled "or for some of us, stranger than usual, then we have to act quickly."

"Cute Sam real cute but you just wait till that freak scrambles your brain and see how you like it."

"Okay" Sam was all business again "I think we should move, maybe head to the cave where you found me, at least if we're in there there's only one way anything can come at us and besides there's obviously no point us sitting in a salt circle, it has no effect on him."

"You got any ideas on how we get rid of this bastard?" Dean inquired of his brother.

"I've got a theory, well kinda."

"You wanna share?"

"We know rock salt doesn't work and we know he can cross a salt line but maybe we should try filling him with lead or silver." Sam finished.

"Sam, he's a spirit, they won't have any effect and besides, Bobby told us that he and dad tried that but…"

"No Dean" Sam interrupted "Bobby told us the creature was unaffected by those things, he didn't say anything about the preacher. Don't forget Bobby and dad didn't actually get to see anything other than the creature and yeah, I get what you're sayin about him being a spirit but what have we got to lose, it's worth a try."

"So you think if we destroy the preacher it may take the creature out as well?"

"Like I said it's worth a try. It wouldn't be the first time we've come across something attached to a spirit."

"Well I'm game."

"Only thing is, we have to try and get them together, the preacher and his pet." Sam finished.

With each of them running the possibilities as to how they would put the plan into action through their minds Sam and Dean packed their few possessions and cautiously made their way through the trees, heading towards the cave Sam had been taken to earlier, the younger man taking care to surreptitiously check his brother was okay throughout their hike.

With the cave in sight Dean breathed a sigh of relief, he really needed to take a rest but didn't want to stop until he and Sam were in the relative safety of the cave so closed his mind as much as he could to the pain and walked behind his brother, that walk turning into an agony filled jog as right before his eyes Sam disappeared from view, the ground seeming to swallow him whole.

"**SAM**" Dean fell to his knees beside the huge crater and was relieved to see his brother sitting at the bottom looking none the worse for wear after his impromptu dive.

"S'okay Dean, just didn't see it." Sam called.

"I'll throw the rope down…"

"No need, I can climb up the sides."

Within minutes Sam was once again on the flat surface of the clearing and preparing to take the final steps to the cave.

Once inside their gloomy dwelling Dean fell back against the wall with a sigh, "Can you not do that again Sammy."

Sam looked puzzled "Do what."

"Disappear."

Sam chuckled "Sorry. Why don't you get some rest, I'm gonna go out and get some wood to start a fire."

"Not on your own you're not."

"Dean, I'll be fine, I won't have to go further than the entrance, the place it littered with kindling, now just sit down before you fall down."

Not having the strength to argue Dean slid down the wall and once seated closed his eyes, the exhaustion the journey had left him with getting the better of his battered body.

"Don't leave it all to Sammy, you're the oldest, you're the one I trained to look after him, not the other way around."

Dean's eyes sprang open, his dad's voice still echoing around the cave.

"You okay?"

Sam walked towards him, arms full of brittle wood.

"What! Yeah, why." Dean stammered.

"You just looked kinda spooked that's all."

"Think I musta dozed off for a minute, you made me jump." Dean explained.

"Nothing else?"

"No, why, should there be." Dean knew he should tell Sam what had happened but it was just a dream, nothing to worry about he reasoned.

Dean watched Sam set the fire, all the time the words replaying in his head. "I'm sorry Sam."

"For what" Sam twisted his body so he was facing his brother "did something happen?"

"No, I'm just sorry, sorry that I'm not helping much."

"You need to rest, don't sweat it."

With the fire set the cave began to warm up a little allowing both boys to relax whilst they ate a couple of granola bars and drank a little water.

"What I wouldn't give for a cup of strong black coffee right now." Dean mused

"You drink too much coffee Dean; you do know it's bad for you don't you?"

"Yeah well I'd rather the coffee get me than some damn do good preacher man." Dean groused back.

Fighting to keep the grin off his face Sam decided it was time they worked on a plan to lure the preacher and his winged friend out into the open and keep them there long enough to do what needed to be done to get rid of them once and for all.

"**Help, somebody please help me, oh god help please."** The terrified female voice echoed around the inside of the cave.

"What the hell?" Dean was on his feet, gun drawn and painfully making his way to the entrance.

"Wait, Dean you can't go out there, it could be a trick."

"And it could be real, we can't take that chance, we have to check it out." Dean whispered.

Hand on his brother's shoulder to stop him simply barrelling outside Sam nodded his consent, knowing Dean was right but insisting on going too. "We do this together Dean; don't take any chances, oaky. Okay Dean." The final two words spoken with emphasis.

"I hear ya Sammy, I hear ya."

The two hunters crept to the mouth of the cave, each scanning the surrounding land before stealthily, eyes peeled, creeping out into the open.

They remained shoulder to shoulder as they searched for the distressed female they'd heard only minutes earlier but could see nothing apart from tufts of grass and trees in the distance.

"You see anything?" Sam enquired of his brother.

"Nothin. You?"

"Nothing."

The two of them backed towards the cave, their weapons still held in front of them in case of attack by anything or anyone.

"Well that was weird." Dean spoke as he settled beside the fire.

"It musta been a trick to get us into the open." Sam spoke as if to himself.

For the next hour Sam recited the ritual Bobby had given them over and over again with Dean checking he was word perfect before either of them would stop, then they checked their weapons, made sure they were working perfectly and had ample ammo, each checked their flasks of holy water, made sure they had enough salt, lighter fluid, matches and a lighter, deciding to carry both just in case one or the other didn't work.

"Huh."

"Dean looked up from sharpening his knife "Something wrong."

"The wood I collected earlier, it's gone." Sam looked around the cave.

Dean looked to where the pile of kindling had sat "That bastard, it **was** a trick."

"Seems like it, but we need more, I'll go get some." Sam made to walk away.

"No, are you crazy, he's gonna be waiting out there for you to do just that." Dean groaned as he pulled himself upright.

"I don't even have to go outside, it'll be fine, relax Dean."

"I'm comin too."

"Dean."

"I'm comin."

Rolling his eyes knowing there was no point in arguing Sam simply nodded and lead the way.

"**Dean, Sam, you here?"**

The two hunter's eyes met "Bobby" they whispered to each other.

Sam quickened his pace leaving Dean to try and keep up as he made his way to the opening. Once there he waited for his brother, the two of them unable to believe their eyes at seeing the man who was always there for them standing in the middle of the clearing, a bewildered look on his face.

"Cover me, I'll go get him." Sam instructed his brother.

Simply nodding his consent Dean raised his shotgun, one eye on his brother and Bobby and the other on the lookout for anything suspicious.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"You boys are a sight for sore eyes, I was beginnin ter think I'd never track yer down." Bobby took a long pull on the bottle of water Sam had pushed into his hand.

"What're you doing here Bobby?" Sam questioned.

"Another body was found, late last night, a young woman and I was worried about you so here I am." Bobby looked from one to the other.

"Another body, you sure; cos we didn't hear anything." Dean asked, puzzled.

"Figured you hadn't when I didn't hear from yer, that's when I got worried, I thought maybe you were in trouble."

"We're fine but it's good to see yer Bobby." Dean smiled.

"You don't look fine boy, what the hell happened to you?"

"The freaky ass preacher." Dean replied.

"You've seen him?" Bobby's voice was incredulous.

"Yeah, we both had a run in with him."

"And did yer get rid of him?" Bobby asked.

"Not yet" Dean looked at his brother "but we're workin on it."

"Good job I got here when I did then. Now who's gonna get that there fire burnin again, its damn cold in here."

"I was just on it when we heard you, I'll do it now." Sam turned to fetch the wood.

"Sam, you are not goin out there alone." Dean made to rise.

Pressing a calloused against the young hunter's chest Bobby got to his feet "You stay where you are boy, I'll go with Sam." The tone leaving no room for argument. "Oh, and you might find something to your liking in there." Bobby winked as he hurled his duffle towards Dean before following Sam outside.

Dean fished a large flask out of the duffle and unscrewed the top, the aroma of coffee bringing a smile to his face "I've said it before, I'll say it again; Bobby you're awesome." Dean smiled as he poured a cup of the steaming liquid and was just about to take a gulp when a cry from Bobby had him scrambling to his feet and running as fast as his aching body would allow.

Tumbling through the opening of the temporary home he and Sam had settled in Dean found Bobby lying face down in the dirt.

"Bobby, Bobby, goddammit answer me" he called as he jogged to the fallen man's side, noting as he went that there was no sign of Sam.

Falling to his knees Dean placed trembling fingers against the older hunters neck, his world falling apart when he couldn't feel the thrum of a pulse "C'mon Bobby, you can't do this, please, just breathe" he rolled the man over and reared back in shock as the face that greeted him wasn't the familiar one he'd expected, instead the preacher smirked back at him.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"So what was in the bag?" Sam asked.

"Coffee, a huge flask of hot, strong coffee, just the way you boys like it. Bobby replied with a grin.

Sam's grin turned into a frown "The whole area's been swept, there's no kindling anywhere. Keep your eyes peeled Bobby, it has to be the preacher.

"What d'yer wanna do Sam, you wanna head back ter Dean or…"

"No, with the two of us we should be okay to venture a little further out and I'm sure Dean's okay back there, he's got a good view of the only entrance, besides if anything happens he'll fire a round off and we'll hear it. Sam cut in, remembering the conversation he'd had with his brother about Dean allowing Sam to take the lead now and again and this, to Sam, seemed to be a perfect opportunity to begin, after all Dean was safe in the cave with a flask of hot coffee to keep him company.

Side by side the young hunter and the man who had become a father figure to the Winchester boys since their dad's death continued cautiously forward, senses alert for anything out of the ordinary until Bobby broke the silence.

"Did I ever tell you about the time just after you were born and Dean came to stay with me for a couple of days?"

Sam shook his head, "No, I don't think I've ever heard that before. Why did Dean come stay with you? I always thought …"

"Thing is Sam" Bobby began "Dean was so used to being an only child he kinda took it bad when you were born, appeared to resent the amount of time your mom spent with you and couldn't understand why the two of them didn't do the things they used to as often anymore. I think the final straw came when one afternoon when your mom had an appointment with the doctor, just a check up as I understand and left your dad, who'd taken a couple of hours away from work, in charge of the two of you. Apparently Dean wanted to go outside and play catch but your dad said he couldn't because you were asleep upstairs and he didn't want to leave you alone in the house.

To cut a long story short, your brother showed signs of harming you and to take away the risk your mom and dad decided that a short time away, where he would be the centre of attention was just what Dean needed so sent him to stay with me for a while."

Sam could hardly comprehend what he was hearing, he knew without a doubt that mom and dad would never have dreamt of sending their eldest child away, that Dean had never, ever been jealous of him and certainly wouldn't have dreamt of hurting him, in fact Sam knew the opposite to be true, Dean was and had always been a protective brother for as far back as Sam could remember and recalled stories he'd heard from Pastor Jim and Bobby himself amongst others how it was Dean who was always the one to be able to settle his baby brother, even when mom and dad failed, the one who had always, always, regardless of anything else taken the utmost care and given so much love to his sibling, so why was Bobby saying these things, it just didn't make any sense; and then in a flash of realisation Sam twisted his body to face that of the Winchesters trusted and long time friend and recoiled in shock as the man standing next to him wasn't Bobby but the preacher instead.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.

impalapal and sunnyjunedays.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Preacher**

**I feel I should point out that this story was completely written before the fabulous Dark Side Of The Moon aired on tv so any similarities are entirely coincidental.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Chapter Five**

The relentless drip, drip, drip immediately to his left is what dragged Dean from the oblivion of unconsciousness. Fluttering lids slowly opened, leaving the aching hunter surveying his new surroundings and searching foggy memories to discover how he'd ended up here.

Vague memories of Bobby floated in and out of his consciousness before the reality of what had taken place slammed into him, sending his body catapulting upright, the pain from previous injuries only slowing him a little.

"It wasn't Bobby." He spoke as if to himself and jumped back in shock when a calm voice answered.

"No, it wasn't Bobby."

Dean squinted in the dim light and inched a couple of steps forward until finally he could see the outline of a body sitting on a chair in the far corner of the room.

"Who are you?

"You know very well who I am Dean, we have met."

As soon as he heard the words spoken in the calm sing song voice the pieces fell into place and Dean knew he was with the preacher.

"Where's my brother? If you've hurt him I swear to god you're gonna regret it." Dean advanced on the still unmoving figure.

"I wouldn't worry about your brother, he's safe for now, but worry not child, you will be seeing him soon enough."

"Will you stop talking in riddles and tell me what the hell I'm doin here." Dean growled, his patience wearing thin.

"You are here son, to atone for your sins."

"I'm gettin outta here right now you crazy bastard." Dean pushed all thoughts of what the preacher was capable of to the back of his mind, his only focus on getting back to his brother, in making sure Sam was safe and quickening his step advanced on the preacher, his hand sliding into his jacket pocket where he curled his fingers around the flask of holy water and inched the cap loose but before he had a chance to douse the spirit with the blessed liquid the air was knocked out of his body by an invisible assailant repeatedly attacking him with an unseen weapon.

Falling to the floor, blood spurting from his mouth Dean could only watch as the spirit of the preacher slowly walked towards him shaking his head as if in pity before simply fading from view but the blows continued to rain down on him, even when he curled into as tight a ball as he could the invisible assailant relentlessly pounded every possible part of his body it could reach, the thud as flesh met weapon reverberating around the dank prison, the snap of a bone and a crescendo of agony travelling across his torso told Dean that one of his ribs had finally given out and just when he thought his body would be unable to withstand any more a loud whistle sounded and the beating came to an abrupt end.

"Ohgodohgodohgod" he chanted as he slowly uncurled his beaten and battered body and attempted to stand, only making it as far as his knees before he was forced to admit defeat.

Kneeling in the centre of the room Dean squeezed his eyes closed for a couple of seconds as he tried to get his breathing under control before slowly inching them open and peering through the darkness to get his first real glimpse of the hell hole he'd landed in.

He already knew the floor was damp, could feel his clothes sticking to his skin but the putrid stench of blood was by far the one thing Dean was desperate to escape from having seen far too often people he cared about spilling the life sustaining fluid after suffering horrific injuries, his mind flashing back to the time he held a dying Sam in his arms as blood poured out of a fatal knife wound, as it soaked into his jacket until finally, his little brother's eyes slid closed and Sammy was gone.

Forcing the too painful thoughts from his mind Dean decided his best option of getting his bearings was to start at one end of the room and inch his way along the walls until he came to a door, 'coz there had to be one' he reasoned; so, on hands and knees he slowly and painstakingly crawled to the furthest corner of the room, ribs protesting his every movement, where he slowly inched forward, following the line of damp stone. Onward he went, stopping every few moments to bend forward in an effort to alleviate the pain in his chest before once again relentlessly continuing on his agonisingly slow journey.

As he inched along what he counted as the third wall his hand came up against something that definitely wasn't stone, it was cold, a little softer and was blocking his way.

Running his hand over the object Dean's heart sank as he realised what it was; a body, a very dead body which, he reasoned, is where the terrible smell originated from.

On further examination Dean was able to ascertain that the poor unfortunate had literally bled out, a gaping wound across the neck and multiple slashes to the chest had seen to that.

A gentle cough from behind had Dean stumbling backwards, nearly losing his balance altogether but was able to stabilise himself with blood sticky hands before he crashed the short distance to the floor.

"I see you've made the acquaintance of our previous guest, sadly he didn't survive to face trial, but rest assured Dean, you will not suffer the same fate, you will face up to your crimes and take the punishment meted out to you, whatever that may be." The preacher's voice held an element of excitement.

"You crazy sonovabitch, you killed some poor bastard in the name of your sick fucked up justice. I am so gonna enjoy sending you back to the stinking pit you crawled out of." Dean spat, his hatred of the preacher spiralling.

In the blink of an eye Dean felt himself catapulted backwards, his body pressed against the damp stone wall, the preacher's face inches from his own, the blue eyes icy cold and full of contempt "**YOU**" the preacher paused "**do not have the right to speak to me, your superior, in such a manner" **and then taking a step backwards the spirit lifted his arm and clicked his fingers as if summoning someone or something. "It is time to face up to your crimes" the preacher turned his head and issued an order to the shadowy figures standing in the background "Bring the accused to the courtroom.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Stumbling backwards Sam quickly glanced to the opening of the cave in the distance.

"He's not there."

"What!" Sam brought his full attention back to the preacher on hearing the softly spoken words.

"Your brother, he's not there."

"Where is he?"

"He's in a holding cell until the time comes for him to face up to his crimes."

"Crimes? What crimes, what the hell are you talkin about?"

"Your brother is bad Sam, through and through and it's my job to see that he's held accountable for each and every crime he's committed over the years, it astounds me that he has evaded capture for so long." The preacher spoke as if the words he were saying were the most normal thing in the world.

"You are goin to tell me where my brother is and then you are going to let me go get him, Understand!" Sam spat.

"I admire your loyalty Sam, you're a good boy and I wouldn't expect anything less from you; but be honest with yourself, you don't really want him back, you know you want to live your own life, be free to do as you wish and we both know that with Dean around that's not going to happen, not now, not ever." The preacher stared intensely at Sam as he spoke.

"You're right about one thing, I am loyal to my brother, but what you don't seem to understand is I want my brother around, I choose to stay with him, I love my brother, don't you get it, he's my family and I want to be with him, I don't want to leave him behind, he's done more for me than any other person living or dead, so take me to him. **NOW!**" Sam advanced on the preacher.

"You protesteth too much Sam."

Frustration getting the better of him Sam lunged forward only to end up face first in the dirt as the preacher's form disappeared.

Scrambling to his feet he turned a full one eighty but there was no sign of the preacher or anyone else; he was all alone and had no idea where to start looking for his brother.

Deciding that his best bet was to head back to the cave, make sure Dean really wasn't there, that it wasn't a trick Sam turned but was stopped in his tracks by a heavy blow to the back of his head quickly followed by another across the middle of his back and then an invisible sharp weapon of some kind tore along his arm, blood immediately gushing from the wide slash as he fell. Instinctively rolling away from his unseen attacker Sam was unprepared for the blow across his midsection that knocked the air from his lungs and had him gasping in pain, a further blow to his right temple sent the youngest Winchester tumbling into the abyss of unconsciousness.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

No matter how hard he struggled to get free Dean couldn't break the grasp the two, for want of a better word he thought of them as creatures, neither human nor animal, one on either side, had on his arms as they dragged him out of his prison, along a dark corridor and out into the open air where the bright sunlight had him scrunching his eyes after being in the dark for what seemed to him like forever.

"Let go of me you fucking freaks." He growled but the creatures paid no heed, instead they continued on their path until they reached a large, high wooden structure surrounded by boulders.

By the time Dean had been dragged over the rough and jagged rocks his clothes were torn and bloodied and his breath was coming in sharp pants as the pain from his broken rib protested the rough treatment.

He was pushed to stand between two solid wooden posts, his guards maintaining their iron like grip on his arms even as they bound his wrists with a length of thick, rough rope.

Raising his head Dean looked at his new surroundings and couldn't help the shiver of fear creeping up his spine as he took in the raised platform opposite him, the preacher seated on a high wooden throne in the centre staring at him with a look of pure contempt lining his pale face.

Forcing his eyes away from his tormentor Dean slowly turned his head, first to the left and then to the right, stunned to see thousands upon thousands of spectators filing in to sit in row upon row of wooden benches, their faces and bodies having the same transparency of the preacher.

A gavel pounding against the hard surface of the desk in front of the preacher brought Dean's attention back around to the front as the spirits voice boomed it's welcome to the assembled onlookers.

"My people, it does my soul good to see so many of you here today to witness the trial of what must be one of the most abominable perpetrators of unprecedented evil it has been my misfortune to bring to justice.

Of one thing I can assure you all, this day will see an end to his lifelong spree of destruction. We shall hear first hand from many of his victims how he tortured and destroyed not only them but their poor innocent families also; but before we commence let me make you aware of exactly who we are dealing with here today. This, this specimen is the direct descendant of the very same man who destroyed the life of one of your very own brethren, his father was responsible for the premature death of Cyrus" a shocked gasp resounded from the onlookers "who as you all know was nearing the end of his time as one of our revered creatures of the woods before being given my blessing to become one of my most trusted servants. The death of Cyrus at the hands of John Winchester, a man who I am happy to inform you has repented his sins and paid the ultimate price for his actions in such a manner that he is now able to enjoy his eternity in a glorious peace, left his family homeless and forced to beg in order to survive. Cyrus's firstborn son has for some time now been studying under my guidance until now I have the pleasure of informing you all that he is ready to step into his father's shoes and become my right hand man," rapturous applause broke out "he has also been instrumental in bringing the accused before you this day, so, for his sake and in his father's memory let us pray that justice will be done. Let it begin."

The crowd roared and clapped as the preacher ended his speech.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Welcome back Sam, I'm sorry you had to suffer as you did a short time ago but I'm afraid it was unavoidable, you see, I needed to get you back here and I knew you wouldn't come willingly and besides you greatly upset my family with your actions, they are highly protective of me and as I doubt I would have been able to prevent them attacking you after you threatened me with harm I thought it best to let them get it out of their system, I knew they would not kill you as they know how important you are to me." The preacher's eyes never leaving Sam's as he spoke.

Blinking to clear blurry eyes and rubbing the side of his head Sam struggled to digest all that the preacher was saying and looked confusedly at the spirit before venturing a question.

"Where's my brother?"

"I've already told you Sam" the preacher glanced through the makeshift window, which was nothing more than a small circle roughly hacked out of the stone wall before bringing his gaze back to Sam "your brother is about to stand trial for his many crimes, in fact, I must leave you soon to go check on him and have him removed from the holding cell and into the courtroom where I shall preside over the proceedings."

Sam's blood ran cold at the thought of Dean being tried, convicted and then…

Refusing to let his mind so much as touch on the subject of what would happen to his brother if things went as far as that Sam returned his attention to the preacher and decided to try a diversionary tactic in the hope it would buy both he and Dean some more time.

"Why did you want me to come with you?"

"I had hoped you and I could work together, stand side by side in the fight against the evil that roams the world. With you by my side I would be able to leave these woods and take my good work further afield." The preacher replied, his face glowing with anticipation.

"Why do you need me to enable you to leave the woods?" Sam asked with trepidation.

"I cannot leave here unless I am invited by a living soul, not just any living soul, it must be a soul laced with the powers such as those which lay dormant within yours. Of course, there is always the option of using some vessel to take me out of here but for that I would need to be within moments of death which in turn would leave me in a weakened state for a time, something I think you will agree, is not a desirable option.

With my help Sam you could be great, I could teach you how to hone your skills to perfection. Together Sam, you and I would be an unstoppable force to be reckoned with by those like your brother who coast through life using and casting aside anyone who stands in the path of their destruction." The preacher's excitement rose to fever pitch as he put forth his plan to the incredulous young hunter.

"But for years and years you have been murdering innocent people."

"No Sam, no, I have been attempting to reconcile warring families, friends, whatever you want to call them but have been unable to make any one of those who pass through here see the error of their ways and have given each and every one of them a fair trial, I cannot help them if they are judged to be beyond redemption."

"You're a murdering bastard."

"I can understand your reservations Sam, I can understand the loyalty you feel towards your brother, I can even understand your repulsion at the fate many of the people who entered my homeland suffered so I will not take offence at your harsh judgement of me, instead as you will undoubtedly refuse to even consider the only route to saving your brother's life I shall take my leave and make my way to the courtroom where proceedings are about to get under way." The preacher rose and turned to leave.

"You're wastin your time; I will never go along with your plan." Sam's voice was little more than a whisper but the preachers words rebounded around his mind and he knew he'd have to ask, if there was at least a tiny chance he could do something to save his brother from whatever the preacher had in store for him then he had to know what it was although he was pretty certain it wouldn't be either easy or good for either him or Dean he wanted to hear it.

"Wait, what did you mean about saving my brother's life."

The preacher turned, a smirk curving his mouth as he once again took a step towards Sam.

"I thought that may get your attention."

"What. Did. You. Mean? Sam menacingly growled.

"Firstly Sam, I really would like you to change your attitude." The preacher's face was stern. "Now this is what you have to do…"

Sam listened horrified as the preacher laid out his plan and was left in no doubt that if he even so much as diverted a fraction from the course being given to him then Dean would never leave these woods be it alive or dead, although Sam knew that if he did what was being asked of him it would surely destroy his brother.

The preacher patted Sam's shoulder and turned to leave the room, pausing as he stepped through the entryway "I will leave you to your thoughts son and hope that you reach the correct decision in the time I will give you. Now I must be going, your brother awaits me."

With those words the preacher disappeared leaving Sam alone in the gloomy space to make a decision which would either kill his brother or destroy everything he'd ever believed in.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"To begin your honour I would like to familiarise the court with the kind of person the accused is, to give an outline of his life so far in order that we can understand and base the judgement of this court on fact as opposed to hearsay." The booming voice of the pale, almost transparent figure striding backwards and forwards across the space between Dean and the crowd began.

"Firstly let me take you back to his childhood. Dean Winchester was born to loving parents who would have given the world for their first born child and showered him with love and affection, nothing too much trouble for the often demanding little boy, for four years he was the single most precious thing in their lives and then Mr and Mrs Winchester were blessed with another child, a baby brother for Dean and thought their lives were complete, so happy were they to have two beautiful little boys and heaped nothing but adoration upon them but Dean was, even then at the age of four, harbouring dark thoughts and planned to rid his family of what he saw as an unnecessary burden, baby Sammy had to go."

Dean listened with amazement as the voice continued to boom its own fabricated version of his early years and instinctively shouted his displeasure at the words.

"What the hell are you talking about you freak, where the hell d'you get this stuff." He struggled against the restraints holding him but did nothing more than rub the skin off his wrists as the harsh fibres of the rope refused to relinquish their hold.

Seconds later he was left gasping as searing, white hot agony engulfed him, could smell the unmistakeable and stomach churning aroma of burnt skin as the tip of a white hot iron bar was pressed against the taught flesh of his exposed upper arm, sliding through skin and the flesh beneath like butter through a knife, before being roughly twisted and wrenched out.

The crowd cheered and clapped as their afternoons entertainment heaved and wretched against the torture.

"Silence, silence." The gavel once again restored order to the proceedings as the preacher slammed it against the hard surface of his makeshift desk. "The accused will remain silent until asked to speak. Is that clear?"

Dean, still trying to regain his breath drew in as much air as his broken rib would allow and didn't respond to the preacher. Seconds later rough hands, razor sharp talons piercing the skin of his forehead grasped his short hair and pulled his head upright.

The preacher repeated his final question. "Is that clear? The accused will answer."

"M gonna kill you, you freak, gonna kill all of you." He gasped.

A blow to the back of his knees had Dean crying out in agony before the preacher declared that the proceedings continue.

"My fellow seekers of the good please do not let this man's threat of violence toward you be of any concern, I am confident that you will all give this poor misguided soul a fair trial and reach a verdict, once we have heard all of the evidence, that is true and just. Let the proceedings continue."

Dean struggled to raise his head as the softly spoken words of the witness now on the stand filtered through the haze his mind had become after the torture he'd been subject to.

"You are not serious." He muttered to himself as he listened to the damning words coming from someone he never in his wildest nightmares thought he would ever see or hear from again.

"I was just an innocent girl going about her daily life when I first came into contact with the accused. Our first meeting came when I met up with his brother in a bar, we hadn't seen each other for quite a time and were reacquainting when **he**" a trembling finger pointed towards Dean "he just jumped into our conversation and Sam, that's his brother, introduced us. I didn't really care much for the way he spoke to me and he kept making these silly hand gestures to his brother whenever my attention was diverted before literally dragging his brother outside and away from me. I have to make it clear to everyone that I was not interested in Sam romantically at all, I just wanted to continue my education, get a good job and make a successful life for myself, but that wasn't to be, if only I'd known what he was capable of," the girl dabbed at her eyes with a dainty white handkerchief before continuing "if I'd known that here was the man who would end my life and therefore my dreams I would have left town immediately but I had no reason to think he was anything other than a little jealous of the friendship between Sam and myself, in fact I felt kinda sorry for him, thought maybe he was lonely and I could probably be his friend also."

The striding, pale figure of what Dean could only assume was the one leading the prosecution's case turned to face the crowd once again before his booming voice rang out around the silent 'courtroom.'

"Here we have an innocent, sweet young girl who had the misfortune to become acquainted with the accused and paid the ultimate price for her generous nature. Before the witness continues I must warn you all that the details of her treatment at the hands of the monster before us" a long spindly finger pointed towards Dean "do not make for easy listening but I ask you to be strong, to ensure that justice is done."

Dean blinked several times to be sure he was seeing who he thought he was seeing and still did not believe that standing a short distance from him and fabricating a web of lies to the assembled court was none other than Meg, the very same Meg he and Sam had seen die, twice.

"My dear, are you ready to continue or would you like a few minutes to compose yourself?" The preacher's sympathetic voice, just loud enough for the crowd to hear, asked the weeping girl.

"No sir, I want to continue, I feel it's my duty to save any other poor girl from suffering the same fate as I did."

"You are very brave and rest assured; you will be rewarded." The preacher nodded to the prosecution to continue.

"Now Miss…"

"Please, call me Meg."

The man nodded "Meg, would you tell the court what happened the time the accused broke into your apartment?

"It wasn't really my apartment, I was just looking after the place for my father, he used it as a stopover when he was in town on business, he's a haulage contractor and has apartments such as these in many cities, anyway, I was there alone one evening when the accused and his brother arrived, Sam really didn't want to be there but Dean" she nodded in Dean's direction "threatened him, Sam seemed really afraid so went along with whatever his brother was planning. We had a few heated words and I asked them both to leave and that's when Dean grabbed a hold of my hair and dragged me across the floor to the window and after opening it simply tossed me out like I was nothing. The next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital, the whole of my body covered in bandages and in so much pain that the doctors had to keep me sedated for three weeks before I was able to cope with my injuries. During the first day that I was awake Sam came to visit me, he said he'd begged his brother not to do it but Dean had been adamant, said I was evil and wanted to hurt his family, I didn't even know his family, the only two Winchesters I had ever met were Sam and Dean.

After a long spell in the hospital I was finally allowed home, my parents collected me and for the following months took care of me until I was finally able to return to school, both they and my little sister were so happy to have me back, we were a family again.

Life was good until one afternoon, as I left the library after a study session I was grabbed and bundled into a massive black car and taken to some kind of salvage yard where I was tied to a chair and tortured until finally my body could take no more and I died, my soul unable to cross over into a restful afterlife until the man who had robbed me of a future was brought to justice. When I was called upon by you sir" Meg looked towards the preacher "I did not hesitate to come and help put an end to his reign of brutal terror." Meg lowered her eyes as she finished speaking.

"Thank you, you have been very brave, you may now choose a punishment for the accused." The prosecutor finished.

Dean watched as a box was held in front of Meg, her hand dipping inside only to reappear seconds later with a small piece of wood.

"Would you read aloud the punishment you have chosen for the accused?"

"Fire."

"The court will recess whilst the accused faces the punishment chosen for him by this sweet, innocent young girl whose life was cruelly cut short due to his obvious lust for blood. I will leave you all to enjoy the spectacle and return shortly." The preacher rose and stepped from the platform taking him out of Dean's line of vision.

The crowd cheered and clapped as Dean renewed his struggles to break free of the restraints holding him, the sight of a figure approaching carrying a flaming torch filling him with terror.

The terrified hunter could only watch as the length of rope at the end of which was his left hand was set alight, the flame creeping steadily closer, the heat becoming more intense the closer it got to his tethered appendage until the hungry flames licked at his flesh before savagely devouring it.

Unable to escape Dean writhed in pain, agonised grunts turned into pitiful cries of agony as the crowd whooped with joy at seeing their prey suffer.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Preacher**

**I feel I should point out that this story was completely written before the fabulous Dark Side Of The Moon aired on tv so any similarities are entirely coincidental.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Chapter Six**

Sam continued to pace the length and breadth of the gloomy space he was forced to wait in for the preacher to return. Time and time again he looked longingly at the opening which would take him out of his prison except that there was some kind of force field preventing him stepping through as he had found to his cost immediately he was left alone.

Being unable to see any guards outside Sam had decided to try his luck and made a bid for freedom only to be thrown back, his body slamming against the far wall as the force-field did its job.

The sound of loud cheers and rapturous applause brought him back to the present and set his heart pounding so hard against his ribs he was sure it'd burst through at any moment, he just knew that something bad was happening to his brother, could feel it as tears of frustration filled his eyes.

"Have you reached a decision yet Sam?" The preacher appeared as if from thin air.

"What's goin on? Sam demanded.

"Oh, you mean the excitement of the crowd that you can hear?"

"Why are they excited?" Sam asked quietly, his body trembling.

"They are witnessing the first stage of your brother's punishment, the first but by no means the last, we still have many witnesses who wish testify, in fact, I think this trial may well last far longer than I had anticipated."

What is that supposed to mean? What are you doing to him?"

"Me, I'm doing nothing to your brother, whatever punishments are handed out for him to face he has brought upon himself by the heinous crimes he has repeatedly committed for most of his life." The preacher clasped his hands in front on him in a prayer like manner.

"My brother has done nothing wrong, in fact it's just the opposite, he saves people, is one of the most selfless individuals anyone could ever wish to meet, he's a good person." Sam's voice took on a pleading note.

"I can see that you are not ready to accept my offer just yet, but fear not Sam, you will soon come to realise that my way is the only way." The preacher faded from view even as he spoke the last word leaving Sam staring at an empty space and cursing his inability to protect the one person who had protected and cared for him his whole life.

"You may as well do as he says."

Sam spun around as the soft voice broke the silence to find a fragile young girl, she couldn't have been more than sixteen or seventeen he guessed.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Miriam, I am the preacher's daughter, or I was until he had me tried and executed."

"His daughter! What was your crime?" Sam fumbled to rephrase his question as the girl's eyes filled with tears and her body trembled "I'm sorry Miriam, what I meant to ask was what did your father think you had done."

"Love." The word was little more than a whisper.

"Love?"

"Yes, I fell in love with a man of whom my father did not approve, you see, Edgar came from what my father deemed a lowly family, in other words, he thought Edgar was not good enough for me because he worked as a labourer in the mines, his father had abandoned his mother leaving her to raise nine children alone; so, as you can imagine, times were hard and the family could not afford many of the things that people such as my father took for granted, but they were good people, hard working." Tears slid down Miriam's cheeks as she lost herself in her memories.

"What happened?" Sam gently pushed.

"I went against my father's wishes and married Edgar." Miriam smiled at the memory before once again her face clouded over and tears spilled out of brimming eyes to glide a path down her stricken face. "At first my father did nothing more than disown me, refused to even acknowledge my very existence, it was as though I were already dead to him and then, a year after my marriage I gave birth to a little boy, he was beautiful, the image of his father but there were complications, he became ill and was unable to be saved, he died in my arms when he was just three months old."

"I'm so sorry." Sam whispered.

Miriam continued as though Sam hadn't spoken. "We buried our son the day following his death and stayed beside his tiny grave until darkness fell when Edgar led me away and back to our home; we were lying in bed just holding each other, trying to comfort one another when the door was forced open, three men rushed in and pulled Edgar out of the bed and dragged him outside, I too was dragged from the house by my hair only to watch as a noose was placed around Edgar's neck and he was hung from an oak tree; he struggled and fought to break free but it was to no avail and all to soon his struggles ceased and he was still. My Edgar was dead.

It was then that my father showed himself, he declared to the small crowd that had gathered that Edgar and I had murdered our son.

Sam remained silent, not wanting to interrupt Miriam as she recounted her story.

"I was tried and found guilty of murder; my father sentenced me to death.

I was led from the court and brought to this very place" Miriam's eyes travelled around the dark space "where the entrance was blocked, there was no window back then, and I was left here alone in the dark until finally there was no more air and I died. My father said he chose for me to pay for my crime in this way because it would give me time to reflect on what I had done and to beg god for forgiveness." Miriam's voice a mere whisper as she finished her story.

"That's terrible; I can't imagine how awful it must have been for you." Sam felt terrible for the girl and wished there was something he could do for her.

"Do as he says Sam, if you don't he'll just kill you like he has so many innocent people over the many, many years since my death."

"He has my brother, I have to save him."

"I'm sorry for your brother Sam, really I am but he is lost, you will not be able to save him, save yourself and find a way to stop him, please find a way to stop him." Miriam begged.

"I can't leave here without Dean, I just can't." Sam spoke more to himself than the girl standing a short distance from him.

"You have to, please, you must and whatever you do, do not allow him to persuade you to participate in any kind of plan, I have seen so many times how he turns against those who, thinking they will finally be allowed to leave, agree to do as he bids only for him to turn on them and try them for betraying a loved one. Please Sam, please do not do his bidding, you are a good man, I sense that about you."

Before Sam could answer, Miriam, a stricken look on her face glanced over her shoulder before returning her attention to Sam "I must go, he is on his way back, please remember what I have told you, please do the right thing" and then she was gone.

Sam turned full circle but once again he was alone, his prison silent but inside his head Miriam's words still rang loud and clear leaving him alone to face the toughest decision of his life.

"I just thought I would stop by once more on my way to returning to the proceedings and to remind you that your brother's life may depend on the line you take." The preacher's icy glare bored into Sam.

"How do I know you'll let Dean go if I do as you say?"

"You don't for sure, what you have to ask yourself is; would Dean do this for you, does he have a chance of survival if you refuse my offer, the choice is yours Sam, now am I wasting my time or do you have something to say to me?"

Even whilst knowing deep down that it was the wrong thing to do and remembering Miriam's words Sam followed his heart and decided that he would go along with the preacher's plan, because, he reasoned with himself, it would save his brother's life and once they were out of these damn woods he would be able to put it all right, would be able to convince Dean that he had no choice, that it was the only way they would **both** survive, so, with a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach Sam gave the preacher his answer "Okay, I'll do it your way."

The preacher's mouth curved in a self satisfied smirk as he made his way towards the dread filled young hunter standing a short distance away "I am so happy you have chosen the righteous path Sam, or may I call you Samuel now that we are to become as colleagues in the fight against evil, at least for now?"

"The names Sam."

As if he hadn't heard Sam's words the preacher continued "I shall return later Samuel, you and I shall put our plan into action, for now though you must remain here whilst I oversee your brother's trial."

"What, but I thought you said if I agreed you'd let Dean go." Sam stammered.

"No Samuel, I did not say that, I said I would spare his life, he must still be tried, and as the trial is under way it is beyond my power to end it before it reaches its natural conclusion." The preacher looked into the young man's eyes "Do not fret, your brother will survive, I have given my word." The preacher then faded from view leaving Sam once again alone with his thoughts, thoughts as to whether he'd done the right thing.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Joshua, Bobby here, listen I need to call in that favour you owe me. Remember I called you about that hunt John's boys were goin on and how I was worried it could turn against em, well I'm pretty damn sure it has so how long before you can get to me?"

Bobby listened, the scowl on his face growing deeper and his temper rising as the voice on the other end of the line spoke before he cut in, his voice raised in anger.

"I don't give a rats ass about any damn job you think you can't get away from, you git your butt down here asap you got that." Bobby was ready to slam the phone down when the voice on the other end begged he listen.

His face softening a little at hearing the hunters reasons for not being able to drop everything and hot foot it to join the search for the Winchesters quelled Bobby's anger a little but he was still pissed and didn't refrain from letting the unfortunate Joshua know about it.

"Why the hell didn't yer tell me before now that it's family you're helpin out, y'know I wouldn'ta asked if it wasn't important, yeah yeah I hear ya but how do I know I can trust this friend a yours?"

Bobby listened to what the hunter on the other end of the phone had to say and was assured that the man coming to give him a hand was one of the best and one hundred percent reliable having worked with Joshua on a number of hunts and never having failed him, besides, as Joshua had informed him, the guy had heard of the Winchesters and had once, a few years back worked briefly with John on a case.

"Yeah, I'll keep you up to date just soon as I know myself what's goin on." With that a worried Bobby ended the call and set about gathering everything he'd need in his search for the boys.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Dean's agony filled cries only increased as the guard beside him smothered the flames devouring his hand with a rough hessian cloth, the harsh material squishing the tender blister filled skin and increasing the pain tenfold.

"Are we ready to recommence?" The preachers voice stilled the whooping and clapping of the raucous, blood thirsty spectators.

"We are ready." The prosecution announced.

"Good" continued the preacher "Now let us begin with the defence. Does the defence wish to call upon the poor innocent young woman Meg? The preacher smiled down on the figure seated just below his high platform.

"No sir" the prosecution began "it is felt by me that the young woman has suffered enough at the hands of the accused, to prolong her ordeal would just add to that. We are satisfied with what we have seen and heard."

Dean, still wracked with pain from the injuries to his hand not to mention the battering his body had taken since all this began dropped his head in despair, unable and unwilling to so much as try to voice a protest, knowing that it would just cause him further suffering. The only thing keeping him going was the fact that he hadn't seen Sammy, so hopefully that meant the preacher was lying when he said that he'd be seeing his brother soon enough.

Dean knew that if Sam was able he'd be tearing the woods apart looking for him but he also hoped that the kid'd taken the time to contact Bobby and get some help because the way things were going Dean knew he'd be in no fit state to help when the time came, if he even survived that long.

Shaking the negative thoughts away Dean berated himself for being weak and focussed his attention on the proceedings, his mind unable to process what his eyes were seeing as the next witness took the stand.

The prosecution once again began the questioning.

"Would you kindly tell the court your name and how you became associated with the accused" the voice boomed.

"Yes sir" came the tremulous reply "My name is Jessica Moore; I first met the accused just over four years ago whilst I was in college." She stopped speaking and looked downwards as if to compose herself.

"Are you alright to continue my dear child?" The preacher asked.

"Yes sir, please forgive me, the memories are painful."

"Of course, take all the time you need."

"Thank you, I'm ready now to tell my story" Jessica looked over to where Dean stood transfixed staring at her "I was living in an apartment with Sam Winchester, the accused younger brother."

One night, it was Halloween actually, I remember because Sam and I had been to a Halloween ball, anyway we were asleep in bed when unbeknown to me Sam heard something and got out of bed to investigate, it turns out his brother, Dean, had broken into our apartment. The next thing I knew Sam was leaving with his brother, he seemed kinda scared, wouldn't tell me where he was going just that Dean said he had to go with him and that was the last time I saw Sam. I was killed two days later." Jessica finished speaking on a sob.

"And you think the accused is the one who caused your death?" The prosecution asked.

"Yes, it all adds up, he was jealous of my relationship with Sam and had me killed."

"Thank you Miss Moore. Unless the defence has any further questions I request that the young lady be allowed to stand down." The prosecution finished.

"We have no questions, we are satisfied that Miss Moore has covered everything we needed to hear."

"You may stand down my dear." The preacher smiled lovingly at the young woman.

"It wasn't like that, you know it wasn't, Jess, tell them the truth." Dean implored.

The witness stood ready to make her exit when a box was thrust in front of her "Please choose a punishment for the accused." The preacher instructed as the pale figure reached into the box and pulled out a piece of wood before passing it to the preacher who immediately gave a gentle shake of the head.

"No my dear, it is you who must read the punishment."

"Please sir, I have seen what is written and I would request that this be kept from the accused until it is time, it will have more impact on him, I beg of you sir."

The preacher glanced at the words, a smile crept across his face before he nodded "You are correct my dear, this is one which shall be saved until later."

Dean trained his sight on both the preacher and Jess, 'no not Jess' he corrected himself 'it's not her, she wouldn't do this' to see if he could get any indication of what was in store for him, the only sure thing he could discern was that it would be nothing good, of that he was certain.

A shiver ran up his spine as the preacher's cold gaze settled on him, a slight nod giving him no clue as to the pain which assaulted his body seconds later as a heavy, blunt chunk of wood was brought down on his one remaining uninjured hand, the crunching and grinding as the impact was made leaving him in no doubt that several bones had been badly broken or even crushed, the agony as just seconds later the nail of his forefinger was ripped from it's bed of bruised and swollen flesh had Dean gasping for breath and silently begging for it to stop.

But Dean's wish was not to be granted as his attention was drawn to two figures, head's bowed, slowly making their way onto the witness stand. "NO, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

he hollered, tears coursing unchecked down his cheeks.

"Mr and Mrs Winchester" the prosecution began "I am sorry we have to meet under such dire circumstances as these but I'm sure you will understand that for the sake of all the innocents in the world and for your son's own sake we need to put to an end the destructive path he has chosen."

Dabbing her eyes Mary Winchester looked directly at her son "How could you have done all these terrible things Dean, I loved you, gave you everything; died for you, how…" Her words were cut of as she broke into uncontrollable sobs.

"Mom, please mom, I swear, I didn't do anything, you have to believe me." Dean's heart shattered into a thousand pieces at seeing his mom so obviously heartbroken, at hearing her words. His head told him this was not real, his mom and dad weren't really standing in front of him saying those terrible things but his heart told him different, in his heart he could see the grain of truth in everything they said, no matter how tenuous it was there was no denying that what they said could be interpreted as fact.

"Stop, stop this now" John Winchester's arm tightened around his wife's trembling body as his deep voice growled the order "You have done enough, your poor mother's heart is broken and I will not allow you to hurt her more, do you understand me boy. Your whole life you have disappointed me and you will do it no more, this will end today, and I'm goin to end it."

Dean sank further and further into the abyss of despair as he listened to his parents, the parents he worshipped recount his life, but not as he remembered it, they told it as one failure after another beginning with just after Sammy was born, through to his mom's death which was portrayed as him not following orders and putting Sammy in danger, his mom dying trying to save the baby she loved more than life itself and culminating in his dad sacrificing his own life in order to once again save the life of the youngest Winchester because once again Dean had failed in his one job of looking after the boy, even going so far as to let the baby of the family face death because his older brother had been careless enough to invite evil into their lives.

"Mr Winchester" the prosecution continued "We have all listened with dismay to your story and I'm sure I am not alone in offering you both my heartfelt sympathy at having produced a child such as your eldest, the accused. What I and the many good people here today would like to know is what you meant when you said you would end it, can you please explain to the court."

"Of course" 'John Winchester' began "My wife and I have tried our whole lives to do the best for our children, as any parent would, but time and time again we have been betrayed by our eldest, time after time when our boys were small we had to watch as Dean put his brother's life in danger by not taking care of him, by refusing to heed our advice to look out for the younger boy, he would encourage Sammy to do things which would undoubtedly have led to his death had not my wife or myself been around to stop him and then, even after our deaths we have had to watch from the afterlife, which should have been our peaceful eternal rest together as Dean has made his brother run the gauntlet of terror time and time again, he even watched as his younger brother suffered what would have been a fatal knife wound had it not been for our family friend Bobby Singer. So I came here today with a heavy heart but knowing I had to be truthful, no matter how painful for both of us" John hugged a still weeping Mary tighter "to see justice done and the unstoppable vehicle of destruction that is our eldest son dealt a punishment which will see an end to his actions." John finished speaking and lowered his eyes.

"That is very brave of you sir." The prosecution added.

"Not brave, necessary." John finished.

The prosecution nodded gravely before pointedly walking towards Dean before making his way to the spectators and finally returned to his spot at centre stage of the proceedings where he spoke to the hushed court.

"Surely the testimony of the accused heartbroken parents will have moved you all as much as it moved me and will serve as a reminder, if indeed any were necessary, that the evil standing before you" he glanced in Dean's direction "must be stopped, not only for the good of all mankind but for himself also. We today have the power to save this poor misguided individual from committing further atrocities for which he will undoubtedly spend eternity burning in the fires of hell. I implore you to keep in mind everything you have heard today whilst we listen to the words of our final and possibly most valuable witness."

Dean simply stared straight ahead, he didn't have the strength of mind or body to fight any further right now, his whole being still reeling from the sight of his mom and dad and the words they spoke against him and although he continued to try and tell himself that none of it was real the complete and utter despair he was fighting against was taking a hold and seeping further and further into his very soul.

"Your honour" the prosecution turned to face the preacher "I wish to call upon…"

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Bobby and Kelvin Morris were already on the road towards the woods holding the Winchesters within its confines.

Kelvin Morris had rapped on Bobby's front door a short time ago and had been invited into the cluttered house by the seasoned hunter who all the time watched the newcomer for any reaction the man may have to the many subtle tests he had prepared in an effort to ensure no demonic or otherwise influence.

Kelvin passed the first tests by being able to simply walk past the wards Bobby had surreptitiously placed, gulped the holy water laced beer he was offered and hardly flinched as Bobby's silver knife 'accidentally' slipped through his fingers only to cut the unsuspecting hunters arm deep enough to draw blood but not deep enough to need stitches. Bobby then led the man into his library and watched as he sent him across the room to retrieve a book, a hidden devil's trap under the threadbare rug in the middle of the room and a more obvious, if you looked up, one painted on his ceiling.

Satisfied that the hunter Joshua had sent him was on the level Bobby filled the man in on what he knew so far before they both set off on what the heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach told Bobby wasn't going to be an easy or straight forward mission.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Preacher**

**I feel I should point out that this story was completely written before the fabulous Dark Side Of The Moon aired on tv so any similarities are entirely coincidental.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Chapter Seven**

Bobby and Kelvin reached their destination just as afternoon faded into dusk, the trees casting long shadows across the short distance the two men had to cover before they finally stepped into the woods and amongst the dense trees where the fading natural light was even further diminished.

The two men trekked forwards; neither wanting to stop and set up camp until they came across some sign that they were heading in the right direction. That clue came just twenty minutes later when Bobby spotted the signs of a recently abandoned campsite.

"Kel, over there." Bobby pointed.

The two hunters carefully examined the area and the ground immediately surrounding it until both were sure they knew the direction the boys had taken and flashlights lighting their way they continued the search, Bobby not wanting to stop for the night, the sixth sense he had where the Winchesters were concerned telling him they didn't have time to spare.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

The two words the prosecution spoke next brought Dean out of his stupor and had him raising his head, his eyes searching and his mind suddenly springing back into hunter mode.

"Samuel Winchester. I wish to call upon the accused very own brother, Mr Samuel Winchester." The prosecution triumphantly announced.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Please Sam, please don't go, you cannot save your brother if you walk out of here and into the court, I beg of you, take heed of my warning."

"I have to go Miriam, it's the only way I have of getting my brother back" Sam hid his surprise at seeing the return of the tragic young girl's spirit.

"You don't know what will happen if you willingly enter the court."

"What does that mean? What will happen? Sam questioned.

"You will become one of them, you will believe what they are saying about him, you will not try to save him; you will condemn him. Ple…" Miriam's words were cut off as she faded from view as the sound of someone approaching echoed around the small space.

Sam watched as a guard entered the room and signalled that he follow.

Pushing Miriam's words to the back of his mind Sam did as requested, confident that the spirits fears would be unfounded and that he could save his brother, that the two of them would walk out of the woods in one piece, that was Sam's first priority, getting rid of the preacher once and for all could wait until Dean was safe and then Sam vowed that he would return and finish the evil bastard once and for all.

A loud voice booming his name greeted Sam as he neared the entrance to the court. The butterflies in his stomach were replaced by a deep rooted hatred and thirst for revenge as he passed through the final opening and stepped out into the wide open space.

"Samuel Winchester, please take the stand."

"Certainly." Sam turned and half bowed in front of the preacher before striding toward the raised platform and taking his place.

"Mr Winchester" the prosecution began "before we go any further can you confirm your association with the accused.

Dean had never been so relieved to see anyone as he was to see his brother, to know that Sam was okay lifted a huge weight from his shoulders and had him believing that all was not lost, that they would both find a way out, that they would find a way to rid the woods of the preacher and his followers and then Sam spoke, his words bringing Dean's world crashing around his ears.

"It is with regret that I have to inform you good people that the accused is in fact my brother." Sam's voice was filled with disdain.

"Mr Winchester, would you please tell the court why you feel as you do about your own brother."

Hardly able to believe his ears Dean fixed his gaze onto the ramrod straight figure of Sam standing a short distance away and shivered involuntarily at the cold hatred reflected in the normally warm, emotion filled eyes of his brother.

"Certainly" Sam began "My bro…, the accused has always been a domineering character, has always wanted things his way and woe betide anyone or anything that gets in his way. From as far back as I can remember he would always keep me in his sights, at first, when I was little more than a baby I thought it was because he was looking out for me, keeping me safe and I idolised him for it, but as I got older I realised it was because he wanted to control me, run my life, choose my friends, choose the path I would take. Whenever I made a friend, it didn't matter who it was or how old I was Dean would pull me away and would tell our father, our mother had passed when I was six months old, that I was getting involved with the 'wrong' type of people, whatever that means.

I put up with his overpowering behaviour for as long as I could until at last I was able to gain a scholarship to Stanford University. Dean went crazy when he found out and if it wasn't for our dad I don't think I would have lived long enough to even make the first day but dad helped me, he sent Dean on an errand on the day I was due to leave so that we could have some time to ourselves before he drove me to the bus station where I said my farewells to him and began the journey which would open up a whole new chapter for me. However, before I boarded the bus I gave my father a diary I'd been keeping for a few years which listed the terrible things Dean had done, the people he'd killed, people who had begged him to help them, I'd also noted all the times he'd broken into places, gambled, started fights and picked up poor unsuspecting, innocent girls so that he could have his way with them before discarding them as though they were nothing more than trash." Sam slowly shook his head, eyes downcast "It sickens me to think that I was unable to stop him."

"It is no fault of yours that you were unable to reign in your brother. I and every one of the decent, honest, law abiding, folk who are assembled here today can see just by looking at you and the way you conduct yourself that you are in no way to blame, your horror at your brother's actions is proof enough that you are a good, god fearing young man and I make the request that you do not continue to harbour any ill feeling toward your good self for the crimes that have been committed through no fault of your own." The preacher nodded his approval at the words spoken by the prosecution and even ventured a smile when from the crowd a shout of "May God Bless You" rang out, quickly followed by rapturous applause.

"I had been at Stanford for less than a week when Dean phoned me for the first time" Sam continued "He said he was on his way to fetch me; that i was to return home with him as that is where I belonged. I told him that I was not going anywhere, I wanted to stay where I was, that dad had given his blessing and he was to leave me alone, if he continued to pester me I would call the police and have him arrested."

"That must have been a very difficult time for you." The prosecution cut in.

"It was sir, it was very difficult, after all Dean was my brother and I guess I felt a responsibility to him but I was determined to stand my ground and managed to convince him that I was happy where I was and would be staying whether he liked it or not." Sam drew in a deep breath before continuing.

"It was two years later before I heard from Dean again, or should I say before I saw him again. I was asleep in the apartment I shared with my girlfriend Jessica.

Jessica and I had been together for eighteen months and were planning to marry; we were looking forward to a life together and had planned our future. We were both going to finish school and then I was going to practice law while Jessica stayed home to look after the children we hoped to be blessed with but all that changed on this particular night.

I was awoken by the sound of someone moving around and climbed out of bed to investigate when I was attacked and knocked to the floor by someone. I managed to get the better of the attacker and then discovered it was Dean. He fed me some story about our father going missing and being in grave danger and begged me to help find him which of course I agreed to. My father had been good to me, he was a good man and I wanted to help him if I could so I left with Dean. We travelled the country over the next two days before I told him I had to return to Stanford as I had an interview which would secure my future if I was successful and as I was pretty confident that would be the case I wouldn't relent when he tried to stall me, did everything in his power to keep me from returning to what I now thought of as home, he even managed to get himself arrested on some minor charge and when that didn't work he pretended the car had broken down but what he didn't know was that in my spare time I had taken a short course on basic mechanics so was able to spot immediately that he had disconnected the plugs and points in the engine. Finally admitting defeat Dean drove me back to Stanford where I left him with the promise that I would keep in touch once I had completed the semester.

I entered the apartment and called out for Jess but there was no reply so I just figured she'd popped out and decided to take a nap whilst I waited for her but the next thing I knew I was looking up at the ceiling and there was the girl I loved, the woman I was going to marry pinned to the ceiling and screaming in agony as she was engulfed in flames.

I tried everything to reach her but was unable to. It was then that Dean appeared and dragged me out of the now raging inferno. My Jess was dead, gone forever.

I kind of lost my mind for a while after that, so lost in my grief was I that it wasn't until a month or so later that I realised that it was Dean, my own brother who had murdered my fiancé in the most terrible way imaginable and vowed that I would see him pay for what he had done to my sweet, innocent, lovely Jess.

The next months, or years I guess are kind of blurry, I remember Dean dragging me from city to city, I remember him doing terrible things, I remember him killing time and time again but I didn't have the ability to stop him, I didn't even seem to have the ability to think straight anymore and then Dean was involved in an accident, it was pretty bad, he was hospitalized and actually died for a couple of minutes but that accident saved me." Sam paused and raised hate filled eyes to look at his brother.

"How did the accident save you Sam?" The prosecution urged.

"Dean was in the hospital for a month or so, so I was left alone for long periods of time. During this time I found my way back to studying and to my surprise found that as the days passed I was able to concentrate more and more for longer periods of time which made me wonder why all of a sudden my mind had become clear once again, it was almost like when I was in school so, thinking I may have been suffering from some kind of longstanding virus I took myself a clinic and requested a blood test. Once the results came through they showed that I had traces of tranquilisers in my bloodstream and then it all made sense, the confusion, the inability to think straight; Dean had been drugging me.

I was, as you can imagine furious, I wanted to just pack up and leave and phoned Bobby, Bobby's a friend of the family and has been for as far back as I remember, and explained everything to him, he was as devastated as I was at what Dean had been doing but after speaking with him at length we decided that we would try to save Dean, we would work together to help him see the error of his ways and hopefully atone for his sins and that is why I stayed with him, but as you can all see, I was, I'm sorry, so sorry to say, I was unsuccessful." Sam lowered tearful eyes as he finished speaking.

"Thank you Samuel" the prosecution paced as he spoke "first and foremost I would like to reiterate that you are in no way responsible for your brother's actions, in fact, as we have just heard you are every bit as much a victim as the poor souls who were not fortunate enough to survive their encounter with the accused.

Now, before I ask you to stand down whilst a suitable punishment is decided upon I would like you to read the words written here."

Sam was handed an oblong shaped, smooth piece of wood.

"Would you kindly read the words in front of you Samuel?"

"Yes sir." Sam nodded his agreement before lowering his eyes and speaking in a clear voice he read "The single living sibling of the accused shall be given the honour of deciding which of the sentences presented after a short deliberation period the accused shall face."

A burst of applause accompanied by loud cheers broke out amongst the crowd as Sam finished speaking.

"We will now retire to review all that we have heard during this highly disturbing trial and will return shortly to allow Samuel the honour of choosing how his brother shall pay for his many crimes." The preacher rose as he spoke.

"Sammy, what the hell are you doin, get away from them, they'll kill you, please Sammy, don't listen to them just get the hell away." Dean shouted.

The effect his voice had on Sam was one Dean would never have imagined. He stood transfixed, his muscles flexing as his brother slowly and assuredly stepped down from the witness platform and made his way toward him. Sure that Sam was putting into action an escape plan Dean was totally unprepared for the vicious blow which snapped his head first to the left and then to the right as his brother's clenched fist smashed into each side of his face in rapid succession, the crack of bone clearly audible as the skin split and blood flowed from the two new open wounds.

"Do not speak to me; the very sound of your voice infects my ears with the evil that is you." Sam spat before turning and following the preacher from the court.

'No, this is not happening, what have they done to him, Sammy, oh god Sammy.' Dean silently cried as his heart thudded and his knees buckled with the knowledge that he had no idea how he was going to get his brother out of here and to safety.

"Don't go with him Sammy." Dean tried one last time, the only reward he received was a further blow to the back of his head and his brother's smirk as he followed the preacher and disappeared from view.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"D'yer hear that?" Bobby stopped and placed a restraining hand on Kelvin's chest to stop the man moving forward.

Kelvin instantly stilled and strained his ears for any sounds that were inconsistent with those you would normally hear when in deep, dark woods such as these, his ears immediately picking up on the distant sound Bobby had obviously heard. "What the hell is that?" He turned to Bobby.

"Sounds almost like cheering, but that's crazy, these woods are deserted." Bobby turned questioning eyes on his hunting companion.

"Maybe it's coming from outside." Kelvin offered.

"Nah, it's comin from in here alright, I mean, I don't hear any traffic or anything else associated with city life, d'you?"

Kelvin nodded, "Okay, so you thinkin this is gonna be where we'll find the boys?"

Bobby looked into the hunter's eyes, his voice steady and certain "I'd be willin ter bet everythin I got that them boys're somehow somethin ter do with whatever that is and I'd also lay odds on that it ain't gonna be anythin good so I say we stop standin here yackin and get a move on cause them boys need help, I can feel it in my bones." Bobby marched forward as he ended with Kelvin following close behind.

"We sure we got everything we're gonna need to do this Bobby?" Kelvin questioned.

"We got everythin, don't you worry bout that. Just remember everythin we planned, as long as we stick to it one hundred percent then we aint gonna have a problem, we'll get them boys back and put an end to the damn preacher once and fer all."

"Bobby just stop a minute will ya." Kelvin ran around in front of Bobby, leaving the older man no choice but to come to a standstill.

"What! We aint got time fer this Kel." Bobby made to move past but Kelvin once again blocked his way. "Kelvin, we have to keep movin."

"I know Bobby and we will, I just need to know something first, if this thing's as dangerous as you say then I have to be ready."

Heaving in an impatient breath Bobby nodded for the other man to continue.

"Why haven't Sam and Dean done what we're about to go in there and do, I mean, from the stories I've heard they're more'n capable of taking this thing out." Kelvin asked.

"Them boys are two of the best damn hunters I've ever come across and believe me I've come across a lot, they are two of the most decent, honest hard working kids you'll ever meet but even they have their limits." Bobby began, lowering his eyes before continuing "When they left me to come here they didn't have the one sure fire thing that'd end this once and for all, they didn't have the ritual I only found just before you arrived and they didn't have this." Bobby reached in to his duffle and pulled out five flasks in rapid succession.

"What is it?"

"This is the missing ingredient that even I didn't know existed until I spoke to Joshua, he told me what I'd need to make this up, apparently he found it in his daddy's journal." The contents of one of the flasks slurped as Bobby shook it "We pour this around the entire area and anythin that's not human or possessed or livin is bound to the confines of it's lines, then we salt and burn as usual but we add this, just a tiny sprinklin is enough to wipe out anythin that needs wipin out in this entire woods, it won't hurt us or the boys or anyone else who happens to be around cuz we're unpossessed, livin, breathin human beings it will also leave the wildlife unaffected, in short, if it's anythin other than a natural danger then it's gonna be annihilated."

Kelvin suddenly knew why all the stories he'd heard about Bobby Singer painted the man as some kind of genius "How'dyou get all this stuff together so quickly, I mean you only had a couple hours?"

"It's just herbs mostly but what you have to remember, it's not what's in it its how you put it together. Now, if you're satisfied that I know what I'm doin can we get on with this." Bobby levelled a gaze on the awe struck hunter.

"Yeah, sorry. Just one more thing." Kelvin ventured.

"What!" Bobby barked, his patience wearing thin but secretly pleased that the man wanted to be as prepared as he could be.

"What do we do if one of the boys is possessed or something."

"Kel, we hope to hell that ain't happened."

The two men walked on in silence, each lost in their own thoughts as to how this thing would play out once they reached their destination, neither one knowing where that destination was but assured that once they reached it there'd be no mistaking it.

"Kel" Bobby's voice was little more than a hushed whisper as he called to the hunter.

"What, what is it, d'you see something?"

"Kel, turn out your flashlight."

But Bobby's warning came too late, before either hunter could prepare themselves they were confronted by an enormous shape blocking their way, the deep shadows as it moved warning them that it had long, sharp talons, the rustling sound told both hunters that this was the creature Bobby and John Winchester had faced all those years ago, or one identical to it.

The creature seemed to dance around them, playing with them, blocking their path as they tried to sidestep it.

"Kelvin, we have to trap it." Bobby whispered.

"How the hell do we do that?"

"One of us needs to cause a diversion whilst the other uses some of this stuff" Bobby tapped his duffle "to trap it."

"Okay, so how do we do that?"

Knowing it wasn't fair to let Kel act as a diversion Bobby decided to put himself in the line of fire whilst silently praying that Kel was as good as Joshua had said he was.

"Okay Kel, I'm gonna stick it with my knife" Bobby began "whilst I'm doin that I want you to be ready to pour this stuff, just remember, you only need to use a little, a five drops at the most and it'll join up to form a circle, once the circle's complete I can simply step out, you got it."

"I got it." Kel nodded.

"Here goes" Bobby lunged forward, knife in hand and buried the blade to the hilt into the fleshy leg of the creature who issued a loud, ear shattering screech as its blood began to flow. Turning glowing amber eyes on its attacker the creature turned and readied itself for the killer blow, its feathers standing on end as it raised a fur encircled paw.

Kelvin moved quickly to remove one of the flasks from the duffle and after quickly pulling the cap off he ran around, making sure to keep out of the line of vision of the creature for as long as possible, dropping globs of the thick, gooey substance onto the ground, the smell causing bile to rise as his stomach churned. He watched in amazement as the globs stretched into a thick line until finally an unbroken circle surrounded him, Bobby and the creature. "It's done Bobby, let's get the hell outta here." He shouted.

Hearing Kelvin's call Bobby dodged the paw heading directly towards him and rolled across the ground but wasn't quick enough to escape completely, the creature's paw catching his arm, slashing through clothing and dragging down the skin underneath, he could feel the damp warmth of his blood spreading along his arm but he managed to get to his feet and jump over the line leaving the creature frantically running from side to side in an effort to escape its prison but finding no way out.

"Now what?" A breathless Kelvin asked.

"Now we get movin." Bobby replied.

"What about that?" Kelvin nodded toward the still pacing creature.

"We leave it there until we've got the boys and then we use the stuff to get rid of it and everythin else that shouldn't be here. It ain't goin nowhere, trust me." Bobby finished.

"Let me see your arm?" Kelvin grabbed a hold of Bobby's still heavily bleeding arm.

"We don't have the time, we gotta go."

"We aint gonna be no use to them boys if one of us is weak from blood loss Bobby, now let me see your arm."

Bobby raised his eyebrows at the no nonsense tone Kelvin used but let the hunter tend his wound just the same.

The two men moved onward a short time later, a soft glowing light in the distance telling them they were nearing the place they would find the Winchesters, each lost in their own thoughts as to what condition they would find them in.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	8. Chapter 8

**The Preacher**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Sorry this chapter is a little shorter than usual but it just seemed like the perfect place to end it.**

**Chapter Eight**

Fighting the encroaching darkness his brother's attack had left him facing Dean struggled to remain conscious, afraid that if he gave into his body's demands he wouldn't wake up again, that the preacher and his followers who now included Sam would see to it that he was given the ultimate and irreversible sentence of death. It wasn't that Dean was afraid to die, what really scared him this time was what the preacher would do to Sam, what would become of his brother after he'd gone.

With the preacher absent from the proceedings the guards decided to have a little fun of their own with their prisoner and called upon the crowd for suggestions as to what they would wish to see the accused suffer.

The first whispered suggestion the guard took from a young woman had the man laughing so heartily he very nearly choked before regaining his composure and making his way back to Dean.

After whispering an instruction into the ears of his two companions they immediately grabbed a hold of Dean's hand and held it firmly against the rough wood in front of him before a young boy of no more than eight or nine years old ran forward brandishing a long, sharp pointed instrument which he placed in the flame of the fire burning just beside the platform. After waiting a few minutes during which time the boy repeatedly trotted toward Dean, kicking his legs and running back again, much to the delight of the crowd.

Still fighting to remain conscious Dean weakly struggled against the hold the guards had on him, not afraid to admit he was worried about what was coming and gasped as he watched the child pull the instrument from the flames and purposefully stride toward him.

Dean screamed in agony as the sharp, white hot tip of the implement the child was carrying was pushed under the top of his finger nail before being thrust as far down as it could go and then flipped upwards, his nail roughly torn out of the skin.

This was repeated three more times until all of the nails on one of Dean's hands were missing.

Dean fought ever harder to fight the rapidly advancing darkness and would have probably succeeded had it not been for the child running forward one last time to lay the once again white hot instrument across the newly exposed and raw flesh where his fingernails once were.

A deluge of ice cold water slamming against his face brought Dean back to consciousness. Before he even had time to get his bearings he was dragged, his knees unable to support him, from the platform and onto the ground below which was directly in front of the spectators.

The guards played with him, pushed him from one to the other, dragged him to his feet when he fell, laughed and cheered as fresh blood poured from yet another injury, slammed fists into the already badly injured young hunter.

After a particularly rough 'game' in which the guards had repeatedly kicked and battered him until he thought he could stand no more Dean lay face down in the dirt when he became aware of someone standing over him, someone who hadn't been there a few minutes before. Raising wary eyes Dean's gaze settled on his brother.

"Sammy." He breathed.

"Get up Dean, do you have any idea how pathetic you look lying there in the dirt, but then again, I suppose that's where you belong." Sam's foot shot forward connecting with Dean's side, the resounding crack and flaring agony telling Dean that his brother had just shattered another one of his ribs.

"Sa…" Dean tried again.

Bending down and grasping a hold of the collar of Dean's jacket Sam dragged his brother upright, moved his face to within inches of his brother's and spat "Do not even talk to me, do not use my name, you are nothing, nothing but a filthy, pathetic animal." Sam then thrust his brother away and watched with disgust as he crashed to the floor a yelp of pain escaping his lips as his broken rib connected with the hard ground.

The preacher who had been watching the events unfold nodded approvingly and invited Sam to sit beside him before he addressed the court.

"My people" the preacher began "It is my duty to inform each and every one of you that we have reached a verdict in this, the most disturbing of trials it has ever been my misfortune to preside over.

Sam silently nodded his affirmation as the preacher addressed the crowd.

"We have decided" the preacher continued "that the accused does not deserve the privilege of life, so therefore it is deemed only fair that he be put to death."

The crowd roared their approval as Dean was roughly pulled to his feet and dragged back to his original place.

The preacher signalled for the crowd to quieten before continuing.

"As we have all heard, the accused even subjected his own family, his flesh and blood to his thirst for evil, so it is only fitting that his very own brother, a young man who has suffered throughout his life at the hands of the one who should have been his protector, be the one to decide exactly how the accused will face his punishment." The preacher turned to Sam and nodded his consent for him to speak.

"It is with a heavy heart that I address you this evening" Sam began "but I feel it is my duty to protect all of you" Sam swept his hands wide, as if embracing each and every one of the spectators "to end this rapidly, therefore, I have taken the liberty of having a chamber prepared where the accused is to spend his last hours of life, the chamber is already air tight so it is my promise to you that he shall not survive for longer than twenty four hours at the most once he is secured behind it's walls. I also assure you that whilst he is awaiting death and judgement at the hands of god, he shall suffer, he shall suffer greatly for his crimes." Sam finished speaking with a bow as the crowd cheered, clapped and whooped for joy at his news.

"Let the sentence of this court be carried out without further ado. Remove the condemned." The preacher demanded.

With no fight left in him Dean was dragged from his platform and paraded in front of the baying crowd before being dragged from the court through a long corridor of sorts and thrown into a cold, damp and pitch black room.

Dean crumpled to the ground as his body bounced off the wall and could do no more than lie and listen as his only escape route was bricked up until he was left all alone, the silence deafening except for the thudding of his heart, the only part of his bruised and broken body which seemed to work of it's own free will.

Tears of despair and frustration at his inability to save his brother rained down Dean's face, he knew this was the end and in a way welcomed it, it would mean an end to all the fighting to protect the only family he had left, he only hoped Bobby would be able to save Sammy. Dean closed his eyes and waited for the end to come, a picture show of his life playing out behind closed lids. A smile broke out as he saw his mom chasing him as they played hide and seek, as hid dad tossed the ball to him, as Sammy smiled a gap toothed baby grin his way and then Dean knew no more as his mind closed down and he slipped into the deepest of deep sleeps.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Dammit, dammit all to hell." Bobby cursed as he watched Sam deep in conversation with the preacher and couldn't fail to notice the bond between the two.

"I don't see Dean." Kelvin whispered.

"No me neither." Bobby repeated before pulling Kelvin to his side. "It looks like we're too late."

"Whaddya mean we're too late." Kelvin questioned, his eyes wide and full of concern.

"You see Sam; see how friendly he is with the preacher?"

"Yeah, but I figured it was just an act."

"It's no act, it means that Sam has passed through the gateway of his own free will and his thoughts have become corrupted, in other words, Sam now believes everything the preacher tells him is true." Bobby explained.

"What do we do, how do we get him back, if we seal them all in the circle then even Sam won't be able to escape if what you say is true."

"Oh it's true alright, Joshua warned me about it but I hoped against hope that it wouldn't happen, this just makes our job all the harder as we have to get Sam back through the gateway to reverse it's hold on him and then we have to find Dean." Bobby rubbed a weary hand over his face as he finished explaining.

"But if Sam's thoughts are corrupted won't he turn against you also."

"Maybe so, but I'm hoping that as the preacher hasn't made my acquaintance he will not have distorted the way Sam sees me."

The two hunters crouched as they discussed their options, always ensuring they were well hidden from view until a short time later they finalised their plan.

"You ready." Bobby asked.

"Ready." Came the reply.

"Ok let's do this."

Kelvin ran one way and Bobby the other, both reciting in their minds exactly how this was going to play out, or was supposed to play out. The first thing Bobby had to do was get Sam alone and somehow entice him away from the rest of the preachers followers and then he had to make sure he walked him through the gateway but it had to be the opposite way to the one he had taken the last time he passed through and then with luck the Sam he knew would return and hopefully remember where Dean was, assuming Dean didn't turn up before then. 'Damn Winchesters, nothin but damn trouble ever since I first set eyes on em' he cursed but deep down knew there was nothing he wasn't prepared to do for those boys.

Kelvin's job was to run to the opposite side of the inhabited space and wait for the signal from Bobby telling him that it was time for him to begin making his way back around to the front, pouring the liquid which would trap all of the inhuman or possessed and then he was to recite the ritual which would draw demons out leaving the body's they inhabited free to walk away, if there was anything left of them after having been ridden by demons for lord only knows how long Kelvin thought.

Bobby made his way through the crowd as they partied and was as sure as he could be that no one would be leaving for a good while yet. As casually as he could he strolled along, happy that no one was giving him a second glance as he searched for Sam.

The hairs on the back of his neck suddenly standing on end had Bobby spinning on the spot only to take a step backwards as he came face to face with the very person he was looking for.

"Sam, good ter see yer." Bobby struggled to keep his voice even as the icy cold glare of the normally warm and expressive hazel eyes bored into him but then the familiar yet unfamiliar face of the youngest Winchester broke into a wide, welcoming grin.

"Bobby, glad you could make it although I'm afraid you missed all the fun."

"Fun, what fun would that be?"

"The trial silly." Sam smiled.

"Trial?" Bobby questioned, his blood running cold.

"Dean's trial of course. That is why you're here isn't it?"

"Dean's trial" Bobby falteringly repeated before recovering his composure "I missed it, dammit, how'd it go?"

"Very well, very well indeed, a very satisfactory outcome was reached and has already been acted upon."

"What was the outcome?" Bobby fearfully asked.

"I fear to tell you that Dean was sentenced to death." Sam's face remained emotionless.

"And it's already happened?" Bobby fought back the sting of tears threatening to spill from his eyes as he thought of all the eldest Winchester must have endured at the hands of the mob all around him and how devastated he must've felt as his own brother turned against him.

"It was swiftly taken care of and now we celebrate, the preacher has given us licence to have a little fun before we return to work at first light. It seems a party of highly unfavourable hikers are due to arrive around mid morning and we must be prepared." Sam's voice remained monotone.

"Good, no more'n he deserved." Bobby nearly choked on the words but knew he had to retain Sam's trust if he was going to stand any chance of getting at least one of the boys out of here and back to safety.

"Amen to that." Sam raised a tankard and took a long pull of the strong ale inside.

Bobby's eyes searched the surrounding area for any sign of the gateway whilst he spoke with Sam and feared he'd never find it, there being so many entrances and exits around the place, but then he spotted a couple of guards, one on either side of one particular opening and knew there was a better than good chance that that was what he was looking for.

Guiding Sam in the direction of the guarded gateway Bobby kept up a conversation, asking questions about Dean's trial and the witnesses he'd been forced to face, his stomach churning and his heart aching for the boy when Sam reeled off the names.

Once the two hunters were close enough to the gateway Bobby turned to look at the guards and then back to Sam before whispering in Sam's ear that he had something of great importance to tell him about the hikers due to arrive in the woods the next morning, something he was sure the preacher would find invaluable to be armed with but as he wanted Sam to take all credit for the information Bobby asked if the guards could be excused whilst he shared the information.

Sam looked doubtful "That is not possible, the preacher insists this entrance is guarded at all times, even I have not been allowed to enter."

"C'mon Sam, you and I can guard it whilst we talk." Bobby cajoled.

Sam looked uncertain, he examined Bobby closely, turned and scanned the crowd before eventually nodding "Okay, but we must be quick, the preacher will be angry if he finds out."

"It'll be quick Sam, I promise." Bobby reassured.

"You may go and join in the festivities" Sam approached the guards "but do not stray far from your post, you will be required to resume your duties shortly."

The guards looked questioningly at Sam, waiting for further confirmation.

"The preacher wishes it so." Sam finished.

Once alone with Sam Bobby backed toward the entrance of the gateway, encouraging Sam to follow so that they could be sure they wouldn't be overheard, the older man forming a plan in his mind the whole time.

Once they were mere inches from the threshold Bobby reached forward to place a hand on Sam's shoulder as though about to tell him some great secret when he suddenly 'accidentally' lost his footing and floundered, arms flailing as he fell backwards, over the entrance to the gateway before landing on his backside.

Seeing the older man falling Sam instinctively reached forward to steady him and was pulled forward into the forbidden area, the effect on him instantaneous. He fell to his knees as his skull threatened to burst as the memories of the last few days crashed into his mind and fought for pole position. He gasped as every minute of Dean's trial played out before his eyes, even the times Sam wasn't present became part of the vivid picture show, he watched as his brother was tortured, played with, jeered by the crowd, his pain at seeing those he loved turn against him, as everything good he'd done in his life was turned into something bad, evil, as he was sentenced to death, the manner in which that sentence to be carried out chosen by his own brother. Sam could feel the despair Dean had felt as though he were living it himself. And then it stopped, then there was nothing, the images fled his mind and Sam was left with nothing but the wetness on his face as tears flooded from heavy eyes.

"Sam?" Bobby tentatively ventured. Sam?" He tried again, this time to be rewarded with a swift glance from hazel eyes filled with fear, sorrow, pain and loss.

"Bobby." Was all that Sam could manage to utter.

"Sam, we have to get out of here, now." Bobby stood, turned to face the exit of the gateway and came face to face with the preacher.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	9. Chapter 9

**The Preacher**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**I'm a little unsure of this chapter and have read and re-read it until I think it'll drive me crazy so I'm going to post it anyway and hope that you like it.**

**Chapter Nine**

"Bobby Singer I presume." The preacher's calm voice belied the fury etched across his features.

Bobby took an involuntary step backwards, silently cursing at the spirits timing before pulling himself together and firing back.

"You presume right, now if you'll kindly move your ass I'm takin this boy outta here and back to where he belongs."

"I think not Mr Singer, or can I call you Bobby? The boy stays with me."

"Not gonna happen, you know damn well he would never have stood by and watched what happened to his brother if you hadn't screwed with his head." Bobby stooped to help up a still trembling and totally disorientated Sam from his knees.

"Bobby?" The almost inaudible voice of the youngest Winchester drew Bobby's attention from the preacher.

"S'okay Sam, gonna get you outta here and back home." Bobby reassured before turning back and glaring at the preacher.

"Where's Dean?" Sam's tremulous voice asked.

"We'll talk later Sam, for now we have to concentrate on gettin outta these woods." Bobby's voice took on a firm, no nonsense tone.

"Your brother is dead Sam, you remember" the preacher cut in, moving to stand directly in front of the young hunter, bending to bring his face level with Sam's "you were the one who decided how Dean's sentence was to be carried out and insisted it be done so without delay. Come Sam, come with me and we will speak, we will plan for your future as my protégé." The preacher encouraged.

"Dean's dead? Dean's dead………No, no he can't be, he can't be, where is he, where's my brother." Sam advanced on the preacher, refusing to believe that Dean was gone even as the images continued to flash through his mind of his brother's tortured final hours.

Whilst the preachers attention was focussed solely on Sam Bobby inched forward until he was close enough to the young man to grasp a hold of his arm and drag him out of the shelter of the gateway and into the open where to his amazement any escape route he may have hoped would be available was blocked as the preacher's followers formed an unbroken circle around the two hunters and their leader.

"There is no way out unless I decide to let you go." The preacher turned cold eyes on Bobby.

"Ya think" Bobby spat back before bringing two fingers to his mouth and letting out an ear shattering whistle.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

As soon as the unmistakeable high pitched signal from Bobby reached his ears Kelvin took off at a run, making his way around the border of the 'courtroom', spilling drops of the potion from the flasks as he ran until finally he was at the place he'd arranged to meet Bobby, his eyes scanning in every direction looking for the hunter. Being unable to locate the man, and unable to ignore the foreboding thoughts filling his mind he scampered to the nearest tree and stealthily climbed it's thick trunk, using the lower branches as a foothold, until he was high enough to be able to see clearly that Bobby had indeed found Sam but was now in a world of trouble as the crowd around the two hunters slowly and menacingly inched forward.

Practically falling from the tree Kelvin reached into his duffle and extracted the last flask of the trapping potion and ran, covering the area Bobby was going to cover once he'd gotten Sam and Dean out but as that was clearly not going to happen now, Kelvin decided that he had nothing to lose by doing it himself and then he would return to the point he and Bobby had started from earlier and would recite the ritual, a portable, battery operated loud speaker carrying his words through the air to their intended target and then, Kelvin prayed, he, Bobby and the two Winchester boys would be able to end this once and for all.

Breath hitching from the run Kelvin arrived back at the starting point and pulled the loud speaker out of Bobby's duffle, which had been hidden under an outcropping of rock covered by thick green moss and readied himself to begin.

Looking for something to stand on in order that his words have the best effect Kelvin decided that once again he would climb the tree and speak the ritual from there, knowing that the higher up he was the quicker and louder his words would be.

Pulling the crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and straightening it, Kelvin took a deep breath before placing the loud speaker to his lips and began reading.

As the words filtered through the air the crowd surrounding Bobby and Sam began to disperse as each one of them jerked as they searched for the source of their torture, many fell to their knees, hands plastered over ears as the damning words invaded the air, panic and the instinct for survival overtaking any former instruction they had been issued.

Kelvin raised his eyes as he finished the ritual, astonished at the sight before him, even though he'd witnessed it many times before, as clouds of black smoke burst out of the mouths, ears and any available orifice of the preachers assembled flock, swirled and dived before dispersing, leaving the ground littered with some still and some writhing bodies. Those that were still standing wavered in and out of sight before simply vanishing all together until only the preacher and Bobby and Sam Winchester were left standing.

Kelvin practically threw himself from his elevated position and, grabbing the small bag of powder that would finally destroy the preacher and the hideous creature, ran full pelt towards the two hunters.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"NO! You will pay for this. The preacher surveyed the remains of his followers "You will suffer for this; I will see you torn limb from limb in payment for your actions this day." The preacher's hostile gaze fixed on the strong, defiant form of Bobby and the slowly recovering form of Sam.

"I don't think so." Bobby spat back as he acknowledged the running figure of Kelvin approaching.

Seeing Bobby's nod the preacher turned his head just in time to see Kelvin stop a few feet behind him.

"And who is this specimen? Is this what you are relying on to save you? My friends, you are doomed." The preacher's face took on a confident, self satisfied and defiant smirk which soon transformed into full, hearty bellows of breath hitching laughter.

"Enjoy it while you can you evil sonovabitch." Bobby growled.

"It is you who are evil" the preacher hissed as he recovered his composure "prepare to meet thy maker." He clapped three times and raising his head muttered unintelligible words to the clouds before returning his gaze to the two men in front of him but speaking to all three hunters. "Soon you will be no more."

Silence fell on the small group as they waited with baited breath for something to happen, both Bobby and Kelvin as confident as they could be that the preachers summoning of what they were certain was the creature would not arrive, it still being trapped and awaiting them to end it's existence. Sam, who was only now beginning to think clearly could concentrate on only one thing, finding his brother and praying that it wasn't too late, that Dean would still be alive, he knew that he would forever damn himself for what had happened today just as he did for his brother going to hell for him, he cursed as he recalled the harsh words he'd spat at Dean just a few short days ago as he'd attempted to make him understand that his little brother was now all grown up and could take care of himself. Sam realised that he'd known all along that Dean wouldn't change, no, not wouldn't, couldn't, would always put himself last, after all, that was the way he'd been raised and now this bastard, Sam levelled fury filled eyes on the preacher, had used it against him.

"Bobby…" Sam began but was prevented from continuing by the older man shaking his head and pointing to the preacher who had taken a couple of steps away from them and was turning in a circle, his eyes cast upwards and a worried frown lining his face.

"What's goin on?" Sam questioned "We have to go get Dean."

"Ya think I don't know that." Bobby barked, his face softening as he saw the devastation reflected in the hazel eyes. "We havta finish this first." Bobby continued even whilst wanting nothing more than to tear the place apart looking for Dean's body.

The preacher's movements became more frantic as his call remained unanswered.

"Time to say goodbye." Bobby walked and stood in front of the preacher before nodding in Kelvin's direction.

Kelvin, acknowledged the signal and pulled the small pouch out of his pocket, aware of the preacher's unwavering gaze, and pulled the string until it fell away. He paused, looked at the two men standing just inches away and shook a tiny amount of powder onto the ground.

For a few seconds nothing happened and then the preacher screamed "You cannot do this, I forbid it, ." Even before he'd finished speaking the ground shook, a strong wind blew through the woods, rustling the leaves of the surrounding trees and high pitched screams could be heard from every direction before the wind abated, silence reigned and the preacher struggled to break free of the black willowy figures clawing at him as he was dragged into the heart of a suddenly appearing raging inferno, seconds later, the three hunters were at last alone, the preacher having been swallowed by the ball of fire.

For a few seconds the three hunters stood in shocked silence, unable to believe that the preachers reign of terror was at an end, that he could no longer cause harm to anyone or anything and was probably, if the figures surrounding him before he disappeared were what each of them thought they were, being dragged into the depths of hell where, if there really was any justice, he would spend eternity paying for the pain and misery he'd caused so many innocent people over the years.

Kelvin was the first to break the silence. "Guy's, we should get goin."

Bobby, a frown lining his face as he replayed the preacher's final moments, as he saw the smirk on the spirits face even as he was dragged screaming into the heart of the inferno turned to speak but before he could voice any words Sam cut in "We're not, or I'm not goin anywhere until I've found Dean. He's gonna need help and I'm not leavin."

The two older hunters shared a look before Bobby placed a hand on each of Sam's shoulders and, burying his unease that the preacher had yet another trick up his sleeve, that he was somehow stronger than the potion used, forced the young man to look at him "Sam, d'you rem… Do you know where Dean was taken? Bobby had been about to remind Sam that his brother was dead but changed direction at the last minute, instead deciding it best to help Sam in his search, besides Bobby thought, there was no way in hell he was gonna leave that boys body here, no he wanted to find the kid, get him outta these damn woods and take him home where he would be given a burial befitting a damn fine hunter and one of the most decent young men Bobby had ever met.

Bobby blinked rapidly to quell the tears gathering in his eyes and nodded to Sam to lead the way.

Sam turned full circle as he searched his mind, the image of his brother's blood smeared, bruised and torn body dancing before his eyes.

"Take it easy Sam; just think about where they could've taken him." Bobby encouraged.

"I don't know, oh god Bobby, I don't know." Sam's eyes filled as the frustration of being unable to remember where Dean had been taken intensified.

"Bobby, Sam." Kelvin began "This place is free of demons, spirits and anything else that shouldn't be here so, how bout we split up, search this area first and see what we come up with, maybe it'll give us a clue…

"That's it…" Sam excitedly faced Bobby and Kelvin. "Miriam said she'd been taken to a place, a place where she was left to die, all entrances, exits and windows bricked up, that's it, that's where we'll find Dean."

"Woah there Sam, who's Miriam?" Bobby placed a restraining hand on Sam's chest to stop the younger man from sprinting away.

"Miriam was the preacher's daughter, he had her tried and executed. Look, I'll tell you the whole story later, after we get Dean back and away from here." Sam shrugged Bobby's hand away and jogged toward the tunnel he'd used earlier, the reassuring sound of Bobby and Kelvin close behind him.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Although in a state of deep unconsciousness Dean was far from at any kind of peace. His body fought to draw in what little air remained in his tomb and his mind refused to let him simply shut down. The images of his family before their world was torn apart by the YED's attack all those years ago continued to play out behind closed lids, the slide show moving ever onward to the time after his mom's death, a time when his dad was riddled with grief and a baby Sammy would scream for the gentle loving warmth of his mom. He relived his first meeting with Bobby and Pastor Jim, the 'holidays' he and Sammy had had with one or the other of the two as his dad disappeared for weeks at a time, he and Sammy training, hour after hour, day after day, a new school every few weeks, hunting with dad, Sammy leaving, dad dying, Sammy dying, being torn apart by hellhounds, begging and screaming in agony and terror as demon after demon lined up to inflict whatever torture their twisted minds could come up with in the name of entertainment, but nothing hurt him as much as the memories of his brother's disgusted, hate filled face leaning close and damning him for his actions over the years, twisting every decision he'd made, turning everything on it's head and accusing him of controlling and ruining his life. The blows Sammy had landed on him being the final turn of the knife, the thing that broke him, knocked the fight out of his body and left him welcoming the hoped for peace of his impending death.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Sam thrust a clenched fist into the solid stone wall in frustration, not even blinking as the skin split and blood gushed from a collection of cuts and grazes "How many more fucking tunnels can there be in this godforsaken place" he ranted, his nerves frayed and his desperation getting the better of him.

"We just have to remain calm Sam." Bobby placated although he too was becoming increasingly frantic at the seemingly never ending web of passageways they'd encountered and still they'd found no sign of Dean.

"Bobby, Sam." Came the distant voice of Kelvin "I think I found something." Kelvin began scraping at the still wet cement like filling holding the rough bricks together.

Bobby and Sam skidded to a halt just behind the bent figure of the hunter who had proved invaluable on this hunt, the distinct shape of a circle recently bricked up clearly visible.

"This has to be it." Sam stated.

"This is gonna take forever to get through." Kelvin looked up from where he continued to stoop, his knife hardly making a dent in the almost dry, rough adhesive.

"Maybe not if we use this." Bobby appeared from behind a small outcropping carrying a huge, obviously handmade, crude solid wooden mallet and hefting it to shoulder height swung his arms down until it slammed into the rough stone wall. Large chunks of rock crumbled at the impact encouraging the three hunters to continue, each taking a turn until at last, after what seemed like hours, days, but was in fact only just over an hour a tiny peephole appeared.

Sam jumped forward and pressed his eye to the small opening but was unable to make out anything, the interior being too dark but what did filter out was the smell, the unmistakeable, stomach churning aroma of death, decaying bodies left to rot. "I can't see anything, it's too dark, we have to keep goin." Sam grabbed the mallet and all weariness disappearing swung it hard and fast until the tiny peephole became large enough for him to crawl through.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Dean was not to be granted his wish so easily, no sooner had the images of the tragedies that had shaped his life ended they were replaced by the happy times, the times he, his brother, his dad and his mom had shared, times which were filled with laughter and joy. He saw his four year old self playing with his baby brother before mom would come and whisk them both upstairs for a bath, Dean holding his Sammy gently as mom watched, a proud smile gracing her face, Dean kissing his little brother goodnight, mom tucking him in and reading him a story, telling him angels were watching over him, tossing a ball around with dad, dad swinging him up into his arms and hugging him tight telling him, showing him that he loved him.

After mom had passed, long after, he saw himself and Sammy playing, he smiled as he pushed his little brother on the swings, taught him to ride a bike, taught him how to balance that same bike without the training wheels, as they played hide and seek, Sammy's delighted shrieks as his big brother pretended to have no clue where he was hiding only to pounce when the younger boy least expected it, nursing Sammy through chicken pox, flu, pneumonia, measles and countless injuries he'd sustained during hunts, encouraging his little brother to ask a girl on a date, being there for him when she said no or when she didn't want to see him again, taking the kid out for a pizza and his first beer, teaching him to drive, the rare camping holidays the three Winchesters had taken, even though both he and Sammy hated camping they loved these times because it meant they were a family, an almost normal family and no one else in the world existed but them for the few days they spent under canvas, their days spent climbing trees or playing ball or fishing.

A small sad smile crept across the features of the outwardly oblivious hunter as the happy times continued to invade his memories, as he sank deeper and deeper into the abyss of darkness, as his breathing became ever more shallow, as his body prepared to slip into eternal sleep.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

"Oh god" Sam gagged as he covered his mouth and nose with his t-shirt, the smell of rotting flesh almost overpowering him.

"Sam, you okay?" Bobby's worried voice filtered through the Sam sized hole in the wall.

"Yeah, yeah I'm good, flashlight, I need a flashlight."

Within seconds a flashlight appeared, its beam shining its light directly onto the youngest Winchester's face causing black spots to dance before his vision for a few seconds as his eyes were assaulted by the sudden glow.

Sam held the flashlight in front of him, directing its beam around the room, the first three walls and corners revealing the badly decayed remains of at least half a dozen poor unfortunates who had obviously fallen foul of the preacher and his twisted idea of justice. His heart in his mouth Sam turned to examine the final wall, almost afraid to begin the final stage of his search of this particular room in case he didn't find his brother, that thought uppermost in his mind and filling him with dread he pulled in a huge, deep breath and shone the beam forward, painstakingly moving it to the side inch by inch, the sound of his heartbeat thudding as still he came up empty and then, propped against the wall in the final corner he needed to check Sam's eyes landed on what appeared to be a mound of rags. Moving closer Sam's eyes widened in shock on seeing that it wasn't a mound of rags at all, but his brother.

"I got him Bobby, I found him." Sam called to the two waiting men. The sound of more rocks tumbling as the hole was made bigger fading into the background as Sam's whole focus was on Dean.

"How is he Sam?" Came the breathless question from Bobby.

Sam fell to his knees slowly moving the flashlight, allowing the beam to travel from Dean's unmoving feet, up his blood soaked body until it finally came to rest on his face.

Reaching a hand forward in readiness to feel for a pulse Sam watched with horror as his brother's blue tinged lips parted, a tiny puff of air expelled as a single tear traced a path down his dirt streaked face.

"No Dean, not now, not now I've found you." Sam begged as he pressed shaking, desperate fingers to his brothers neck, his words turning to sobs at the absence of the tell tale thrum of a pulse.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	10. Chapter 10

**The Preacher**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Thank you to all of you who have put this story on alert and a special thank you to those of you who have dropped me a review, I love hearing from you.**

**Chapter Ten**

Rooted to the spot as grief overwhelmed him Sam didn't hear Bobby and Kelvin scramble through the hole, he could do no more than simply stare at his brother's face; watch as the skin became even paler, as the blue took over the pink of his lips.

"Sam I need to get to him." Bobby's frantic shout went unanswered so he grabbed a hold of Sam's shoulders and roughly pulled him out of the way before checking for himself that there was no pulse then he quickly lay Dean flat on the floor before beginning chest compressions alternated by mouth to mouth, still nothing, still Dean remained lifeless.

"Bobby let me." Kelvin placed a hand on Bobby's shoulder not having been able to miss the shaking of the man's hands.

"I can do…" Bobby began but lowering his head he nodded his consent for Kelvin to take over and quickly scrubbed the wetness from his face.

Sam and Bobby knelt side by side, both silent, lost in their own thoughts as they watched Kelvin try to restore life to the young man who meant the world to both of them, both not daring to let their minds believe that he would be anything but successful but both knowing deep down that that was a very real possibility.

Neither knew exactly how long Dean had been here but both knew roughly how long a person could survive with such little air as this prison had and what the chances of survival were, therefore increasing their fear a thousand fold.

Kelvin continued to carry out CPR on the unconscious hunter, he wouldn't let himself think of him as anything other than unconscious, the alternative being unacceptable even to him even though this was the first time he'd come into contact with Dean Winchester he'd heard enough stories about him to have the utmost respect for the kid and he'd be damned if he didn't fight with everything he had in him to make sure he got out of these damn woods alive so he continued on his quest, aware of the two men watching his every move, the anxiety rolling off of them and building an almost unbearable tension in the room making it hard for him to breathe himself let alone Dean.

Checking for a pulse for what felt like the fiftieth time but was in fact only the third Kelvin frowned as he concentrated, hardly daring to believe it was true, then raising his head to look at the two other occupants of the confined space spoke the words that would give them hope.

"I got a pulse, it's weak at best but it's there."

Sam scooted forward and placed shaking fingers to his brother's neck, his body sagging with relief as he too felt the barely there pulse.

"We need to get him outta here, out of these woods and to a hospital, I can see a lot of injuries and it's my bet that there's plenty more I can't see." Kelvin moved to Dean's feet as he spoke and waited for one of the two men to take position at Dean's head and shoulders before lifting him.

"I'll help carry him Sam, you lead the way, keep yer eyes open fer any trouble, we should be okay but you can never be too careful." Bobby instructed.

Without a word Sam made his way to the opening, scrambled out and waited for the two hunters carrying his brother. He took a hold of Dean's feet to allow Kelvin to climb out before relinquishing his hold and moving to stand close to the hole in the wall guided his brother's upper body out, taking the full weight until Bobby had managed to get himself clear before once again entrusting his brother to the older hunter's safe hands.

The journey through the woods was quick, easy and uneventful; the early morning light only just filtering through the thick covering of leaves the densely planted trees created.

As they neared the spot where they'd had the encounter with the creature Bobby and Kelvin shared a glance, both ready to spring into action at a moments notice and both thankful that when they reached the patch of land they'd trapped it in the only visible sign that anything had even been there was a blue tinge on the grass.

After what seemed like a lifetime to Sam the three hunters and their precious cargo finally stepped out of the woods and were within a few steps of their respective vehicles.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

With a still unmoving Dean safely lying on the backseat of the Impala and Sam watching over him and holding him tight to make sure he didn't roll off the seat and crash to the floor of the car Bobby dived into the driver's seat whilst tossing the keys to his truck to a bemused looking Kelvin, shouting an instruction as he moved.

"Bring the truck back to my place, we'll meet you there." Without waiting for a response Bobby pressed his foot on the accelerator and sped off along the road, a deep sigh escaping him as he glanced in the rear view mirror to see the bemused and rapidly diminishing figure of Kelvin still standing in the middle of the deserted road.

"How much further Bobby?" Sam asked after what to him felt like hours on the road.

"Nearly there Sam. How's he doin?"

"I don't know, he hasn't moved, not even a flicker; his pulse is still weak, too weak." Sam added almost to himself before continuing "He will be okay though won't he Bobby, I mean, I know he stopped breathing but Kelvin got him back pretty quick so he should be okay right?" Sam's voice was hoarse and little more than a whisper as he fought to control the fear that was threatening to engulf him.

Not wanting to assure Sam that Dean would be fine, because Bobby really didn't know if he would be but he did know that this was going to be a hard and difficult battle for all of them and not wanting to frighten Sam any more than he already was Bobby evaded giving a direct answer.

"Soon as we get him back we'll take a good look at him, clean him up and take it from there."

"So you don't think he'll be okay?" Having known Bobby for most of his life Sam was easily able to recognise Bobby's diversionary tactic and although he loved the man for it he wouldn't be put off. "You don't think he's gonna make it do you?" Sam's voice rose as his fear of the unthinkable tightened its hold on him.

"I didn't say that Sam." Bobby snapped and immediately felt guilty so softening his voice a little he tried to ease the kid's fears "Neither of us can possibly know exactly how he's doin till we get him home and take a look, but what I can promise you Sam is that I will move heaven an earth to make sure that brother a yours comes back from this."

Fighting back tears Sam choked out a "Thanks Bobby" past the ever growing lump in his throat.

Pressing his foot harder on the gas Bobby willed the car to go even faster, he was already breaking every motoring law ever passed but still the journey seemed to be taking forever.

Both hunters were silent for a while, Sam watched over his brother, afraid that if he took his eyes off him then Dean would disappear altogether and Bobby concentrated on driving, mentally ticking off the medical equipment they'd need once they reached his place and hoping that he'd have everything even whilst knowing that his first aid supplies were always kept well stocked, after all he thought, in their line of work you never knew when they'd be needed at short notice.

"Dean, Dean can you hear me?" Sam's excited/scared/desperate/hopeful voice filled the interior of the car.

"Sam?" Bobby glanced over his shoulder.

"He moved Bobby, he squeezed my hand, his eyes flickered open." Sam excitedly explained before once again returning his full attention to his brother, silently begging for more.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Slowly, very slowly a familiar and comforting aroma penetrated his senses quickly followed by the sound of voices echoing around him. He knew he knew who the voices belonged to but for the life of him he couldn't place them.

Concentrating hard Dean was able to close his fingers around the warm object gripping his hand and fought against the glue sealing his eyes shut.

A face peering down at him brought recent events crashing into his marshmallow filled brain as the preacher's smirk filled his line of vision before he willingly gave up the fight and sank back into the comforting dark oblivion, a tremor rippling through his battered body as the thought 'It's not over' flittered through his mind.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Bobby was clambering out of the impala even before it came to a standstill and pulled open the rear door ready to help Sam slide Dean out of the back seat after which the two hunters quickly and carefully carried the dead weight of their injured family into the house and up the stairs where they deposited him on the bed which was always Dean's whenever the boys stayed over at Bobby's for one reason or another.

Bobby ran downstairs to retrieve the first aid kit and to fetch a bowl of warm water and some wash cloths whilst Sam carefully and tenderly began the arduous task of removing his brother's blood soaked, mud stained clothing, all the time whispering words of encouragement in the hope that Dean would hear him and respond in some way, to Sam it didn't matter how small just as long as he got something, but Dean remained deathly still and silent.

Once Dean was down to his boxers both Sam and Bobby could only stare in horror and disbelief at the injuries littering Dean's entire body, from the cuts and bruises to his legs, up to the purple of the bruises on his abdomen and chest, the cuts to his arms, the bare, still seeping flesh where every single finger nail from one hand had been viciously torn away to the blotchy red and swollen obviously broken other hand. The cuts and bruises to Dean's face were familiar to the two hunters by now, having seen them immediately they were able to after leaving the cave but combined with the rest of the injuries they painted a picture of someone who had been beaten and tortured beyond all imaginable boundaries.

"Sam, we should take a look at his back, think you can lift him?" Bobby whispered as his heart shattered for all the pain and suffering Dean had obviously endured.

Unable to find his voice and with hands trembling and eyes full of unshed tears Sam leaned over his brother and very carefully, very gently rolled him toward himself until he had his arms around the broad shoulders and was hugging the most important person in his life, Bobby's gasp only leading him to tighten his hold.

"Okay Sam, you can let him down now." Bobby watched as Sam reluctantly released his hold before raising dread filled eyes to meet his, the question reflected in them clear.

"Several seeping welts, swelling and bruising." Further words unnecessary Bobby strode to the bowl of water and after dipping a wash cloth into the warm water he began tenderly cleaning the blood and dirt from Dean's torso and choked back the sob which threatened to break out when he saw Sam follow suit and begin to clean his brother's face.

Having cleaned the blood and grime from Dean's body and checked his pulse rate, which to their relief was now a little stronger Sam began to bandage the wounds which didn't need stitching whilst Bobby threaded a needle and prepared himself to stitch those that did.

The sound of the front door bursting open followed by running footsteps clambering up the stairs heralded the arrival of Kelvin who burst into the bedroom come hospital room.

Standing in the doorway, his unbelieving eyes taking in the scene before him Kelvin's temper got the better of him "What the hell d'you think you're doin? Moving towards the bed he gasped at the sight of the still unconscious young hunters abused body. "You can't take care of this, he needs to go to the hospital, you don't know what…"

"We can't take him to no hospital, we have to do what we can for him here, now you can either help or turn tail an get yer ass outta here." Bobby glared at the hunter glaring back at him.

A groan from the prostrate form of Dean brought three pairs of eyes to settle on him before, in a flurry of activity they were all standing over him, Sam falling to his knees, whispering words of encouragement.

Eyes fluttering open Dean caught flashes of blue, ice cold blue eyes peering down at him and tried to scoot backwards, away from the hate filled gaze, his breath hitching and a gasp forcing it's out of his mouth as a crescendo of white hot tearing agony blazed it's way through his body, his nerve endings seemingly on fire, a stuttered plea issued through sore, cracked lips.

"Wh wh wha y'wa wan fr from m me?"

"Dean, it's okay, it's me, Sam, you're safe now, the preacher's gone, he can't hurt you anymore." Sam leaned closer to his brother.

"N no, Smy's g g gone, w w went w w with h h him, h h hates m m me. W went w w with y you." Dean's eyes moved until he was looking directly at Sam but instead of seeing his brother the face that stared back at him was that of the preacher.

"Dea…" Sam began but was interrupted by Bobby placing strong hands on his shoulders and manoeuvring him away. "No, Bobby…"

"Look Sam, look at yer brother, he's not seein you." Bobby forced Sam to really look at his sweat soaked broken brother. "He jus needs some time, he's confused, give him some breathin space." Bobby gently pushed Sam behind him and took up his place beside Dean.

"Dean, it's me, Bobby."

"Bo Bobby, I l lost h him, l lost s sammy."

"You didn't lose him son."

"P preacher t took h him, h hates m me, m mom n d dad, I l let em all d down." Dean's eyes slid closed on the last word.

"Dean." Sam rushed forward, roughly pushing Bobby to the side. "Dean."

Heart aching for his two fellow hunters Kelvin moved to stand beside Bobby "Bobby please, we have to get him some proper help." He pleaded.

"I called a contact of mine, lives in the next town over, he's on his way, used to be a doctor till he got caught up in huntin, he knows his stuff, he's gonna take a look at Dean." Bobby's voice was flat, emotionless as all the fight drained from his body leaving him wanting to do nothing more than bury himself in a bottle of bourbon, anything to escape the helplessness and guilt he felt at having to watch the two boys he considered family suffer the consequences of a hunt he and John Winchester should have put to rest many years ago, when Sam and Dean were little more than babies.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Following the doctor's visit Bobby and Kelvin took shifts in watching over Dean, Sam reluctantly staying out of sight should his brother wake. The doctor's words giving all of them hope that Dean would recover physically fairly quickly, psychologically would probably take a little longer and would require patience and understanding from all of them, something Sam found frustrating, he just wanted to go to Dean, make him listen to him, make him realise that he was safe now, that he hadn't let anyone down, that nobody hated him. A part of Sam was also mad as hell and although he knew it was wrong to feel this way about his brother, especially right now, he couldn't help it because once again Dean was beating himself up about something he thought he should've done to protect his little brother when in reality there was nothing he could've done any differently, the preacher had used his powers and no one, not Sam, not Dean, not anyone could've done anything differently; but there was Dean, upstairs, his body broken and his mind, whenever he regained consciousness for any length of time, torturing him with thoughts being a failure for not protecting his brother, for letting down his parents.

Sam slammed a clenched fist onto the hard wood surface of Bobby's kitchen table, his empty coffee mug jumping and skittering toward the edge before it crashed to the stone floor where it shattered into what looked like a thousand pieces.

"Why the hell don't you ever listen to anything anyone tells you you stupid stubborn jerk." Sam raised his eyes upwards as he growled the words through clenched teeth.

"Sam?"

Sam spun around to see Bobby standing in the doorway.

"C'mon kid, you wanna get us some coffee, course, you're gonna need another mug." Bobby's eyes moved to the mess on the floor.

"Sorry, I'll clean it up." Sam moved to fetch a brush but was stopped by the older hunter.

"Leave it Sam, jus sit down will yer."

Evading meeting the older mans gaze Sam sat heavily on the chair, his thoughts a mixture of worry and anger which in turn led to guilt, guilt that he should be feeling anything other than concern for Dean.

"I know this is hard on yer Sam, but we all gotta be strong right now, we gotta be there for Dean cuz when he wakes he's gonna need us, probly moren he's ever needed us before and before you say it, I know what he's bin through, I know how he was when he got outta the pit but this time it seems, from what he says and what you've told me, that everythin he's ever done his whole life has been turned on it's ass, hell if that bastard brought your mom and dad into it then you know as well as I do how hard that'll hit him, specially if, as you say, they did nothin moren condemn him for just about every step he's ever taken." Bobby took a long gulp of the hot black coffee in front of him whilst he waited for his words to register with the young hunter sitting across the table from him.

"I know what you're saying is right Bobby, I do but I just, god I just wanna shake some sense into him, I mean, after everything I said to him just a few days ago and he promised, he promised that he'd try and now look at him." Sam's eyes met Bobby's as he finished speaking.

"Sam, what you have to understand is that he can't turn it off at the flick of a switch, his whole life from the age of four when your mom was taken he's had it drilled into him that it's his job to watch out for you, protect you, keep you safe."

"I know that Bobby, hell I lived it, from as far back as I can remember until I went to college and then after Jess died he picked up right where he left off and yeah, I admit, I was a mess for a while there and I needed him like you wouldn't believe and he was always there for me and he'll never know how much I appreciate him for what he did for me, how much I love him for helping me to get through it when all I really wanted to do was find the bastard who'd taken her from me and have my revenge, I didn't even care if I died trying, but Dean did, he refused to ever give up on me, even when I pushed him away he always came back for more, but he won't allow me to do the same for him and I'm just frightened that one day he's gonna go too far and then I'll lose him altogether, he'll never be able to come back." Sam's emotions were in overdrive as he spoke.

"Like I said son, it's gonna take time."

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Bobby and Kelvin continued to watch over Dean in shifts with Sam sitting on the top stair just outside the room, his relief heartfelt as his brother's bouts of consciousness became more and more frequent and lucid.

Eight days after arriving at Bobby's Dean was able to remain conscious for practically the whole day, his injuries, with the exception of his still painful ribs, plaster encased broken hand and bandaged fingers were almost healed, the bruises faded to a mottled yellow and the broken skin successfully sewn together.

The problem Bobby and Kelvin had now was keeping the stubborn young man in bed, Dean was restless, edgy and his temper short and most worryingly of all for the two men was his absolute refusal to discuss anything, anything at all about Sam or the hunt, he simply pressed his mouth closed and gazed out of the window whenever the subject was broached.

Sam, his earlier anger abated was now anxious to visit his brother, talk to him, see for himself that Dean was really on the mend but all he could do was peer into the darkened room when he knew Dean would be sleeping, that small action only going a tiny way to reassure him that his brother was out of danger. As for Dean's psychological health, according to Bobby, Dean was coping well and recognized that he was suffering from some kind of hallucinations whenever he thought he saw the preacher, having been reassured by both Bobby and Kelvin that the preacher was no more, that they'd watched with their own eyes as he was dragged kicking and screaming into the pits of hell.

Bobby had promised Sam that the next thing he was going to tackle was Dean's refusal to speak about Sam, or any of his family for that matter, he vowed that although it'd be difficult considering how Dean emotionally shut himself off whenever the subject was raised that he would not give up and Sam knew that Bobby was as good as his word and although it was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do he stuck to the plan, the plan that said he'd remain out of Dean's sight until Bobby had paved the way for them to meet.

Sam kept himself busy during the long days by doing odd jobs around the salvage yard for Bobby and had just stepped onto the porch after having been inside to bid farewell to Kelvin who was now on his way upstairs to say goodbye to Dean when he noticed that a stack of gas canisters had toppled over, some sitting far too close for comfort to a still smouldering trash can Bobby had used to burn some rubbish in earlier.

Sam jogged across the yard and had barely removed the last canister when Kelvin's horror laden voice rang out, the sound filtering through the open windows to reach Sam's ears.

"**No Dean" **quickly followed by** "I need help up here, NOW."**

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	11. Chapter 11

**The Preacher**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Thank you to all of you who have put this story on alert and a special thank you to those of you who have dropped me a review, I love hearing from you.**

**This is the penultimate chapter, hope you enjoy.**

**Chapter Eleven**

Sam and Bobby reached the bottom of the stairs at precisely the same time and giving each other a quick glance both men pounded up, Bobby pulling Sam back just as the younger man was about to burst into the room.

"Wait here till I see what's goin on." Bobby whispered before taking a calming breath and walking through the doorway, his eyes widening at the scene before him.

Dean was out of bed and stood, his body propped upright against the wall by the window, the bandage on his hand all but completely unravelled, aiming a gun held in still raw fingers directed toward Kelvin.

"Dean, what's goin on?" Bobby carefully questioned.

Dean moved the gun a little to the side so that he had both Bobby and Kelvin covered.

Bobby tried again. "Dean, what's wrong?"

"He's a damn liar." Dean growled before turning fury filled eyes on Bobby "And maybe you are too."

"What the hell you talkin about boy, and stop waving that damn thing around." Bobby ordered.

"I only came to say goodbye and to wish him well, I have no idea what's eatin at him, he just went crazy." Kelvin spoke, turning his head to look at Bobby.

"I saw him." Dean's voice was low and deadly.

"Saw who. What the hell are you talkin about Dean?" Bobby repeated as he fought to keep his voice even.

"Sam, you asshole, or the thing that used to be Sam." The gun trembled slightly as Dean spoke his brother's name, the memories of his trial resurfacing, the familiar face taunting him, the enormous clenched fist which usually fought at his side slamming into his face, Sam turning his back on him, his face full of hatred and contempt.

"Dean." Bobby inched forward only to freeze as Dean inched his finger back, the telltale click telling him that Dean had taken the safety off and was ready to fire.

Outside, on the landing, Sam listened in horror as his brother threatened to pull the trigger and even though Dean was still not on top of his game Sam knew he wouldn't miss, Dean had the most accurate shot of anyone he'd ever known and decided there was only one thing for it, he was going to have to show himself, after all, Dean knew he was around, he may as well come clean and hopefully put this thing to rest once and for all.

"Now, I'm gonna walk outta here and you two are gonna let me, if either of you tries to stop me you better believe I'll use this." Dean waved the gun from side to side as he inched forward, his breathing ragged as even that small step left him breathless.

"Dean you can hardly stand, where're you gonna go?" Bobby's worried voice asked.

"I'm gonna find out what he did to you and then I'm gonna see if it can be reversed."

"Son, no one did anything to either of us." Bobby nodded his head toward the hunter standing beside him.

"The Bobby I know would never do this."

"Do what, what am I s'posed to have done Dean?"

"You kn…" Dean's words died on his lips as a figure appeared in the doorway, a smile curving its mouth and icy blue eyes boring into him.

Taking an involuntary step backwards Dean found himself pressed against the wall.

"Dean." Sam whispered just that one word.

"You sonuvabitch, you took my brother."

"Dean it's me, he didn't take me."

"Tell me where he is or I end your miserable ass right here, right now." Dean levelled his gun on the newcomer.

"Dean look at me, it's me."

"You're not my brother."

"I know what he did to you, what I did to you, but you have to believe me Dean, I would never have hurt you if I'd known what I was doin, he screwed with my head just like he's done with you, if you concentrate, think really hard back to the time before we first saw him, the preacher will lose his power over you, please Dean, please try." Sam begged.

For a moment the room was silent, no one of the four hunters moved or spoke, the only sound was the ticking of the clock, then Dean shook his head, his eyes cold "Ain't gonna work asshat, now move." Dean indicated Sam move to stand beside Bobby and Kelvin.

Silence once again descended on the room as the three men facing the still weak young hunter on the other side of the room tried to come up with a plan which would convince Dean that Sam was who he said he was and that none of them wanted to do anything other than try to help him.

"Y'see, I know it's one of you, or maybe it's all three of you." Dean mused aloud before continuing "Those first couple of days after you brought me here, when you thought I was out of it, and I admit, I was pretty much most of the time but someone, one of you" Dean nodded to each one in turn "tried to make sure I'd remain that way but I gotta say, I still haven't figured out exactly why you didn't just finish me off, hell you had plenty of opportunity, I mean, I was hardly able to fight back now was I."

"Dean please." Sam began but got no further as the room was suddenly filled with loud, roaring laughter.

"Oh Dean, you are such a delight, you really are, you have so many issues that you were a dream come true for me, I knew I'd finally be able to get out of those damn woods, I knew they'd come looking for you and lo and behold, there they were, saving you from the clutches of death with minutes to spare. I have to say, it was very exciting but sadly all for nothing." Kelvin swept his hand around the room sending the three hunters careening backwards until each was held by invisible restraints against the wall.

"Kelvin?" Bobby gasped.

"Not anymore" the preacher's voice rang out loud and clear. "He's still in here, but he won't be making an appearance any time soon, I mean, why would I give up this body when it can lead me directly into the heart of the hunting world, where I will find all manner of misguided souls to steer onto the righteous path, much like you Dean" 'Kelvin' sauntered over to Dean, stopping a hairs breadth in front of him.

"You can't be here." Bobby spoke as if to himself.

"And yet I am." The preacher continued to stare into Dean's eyes as he spoke.

"You should've been destroyed by the spell."

"Bobby, Bobby, Bobby you underestimate me, I knew the minute you had me cornered what you were planning to do and I of course acted accordingly, protecting myself from your witchcraft with a little magic of my own, magic I managed to glean from a so called hunter who had the misfortune to pass through my woods a couple of years ago. Of course, it was a use one time only spell but that will not matter now that I am free." The preacher/Kelvin smiled "Back to the matter at hand Dean, you and I have some unfinished business."

Dean groaned as one by one his healing injuries resurfaced, slowly the healing process reversed itself, his broken hand began to swell, the plaster cast encasing it slowly cracking under the pressure, the welts on his back reopened, blood seeped from the open wounds, the cuts and bruises on his face intensified in both colour and severity, his ribs screamed at him as two loud cracks resounded around the room as they re-cracked and finally the air was slowly squeezed out of his lungs as he relived the punishment meted out to him by the preachers court.

Sam shouted his brother's name as he watched his sibling, still pinned to the wall by an unseen force as his body sagged even whilst he struggled to remain conscious.

"Let him go, I'm gonna kill you." Sam screamed.

"You couldn't manage it last time so what makes you think you'll do any better now." Still the preacher didn't turn to face the frantic young hunter; instead he kept his gaze firmly locked on the object of his torture.

"Oh no Dean, oh no you don't, you will not escape the experience of passing from this world and on into the next by slipping into unconsciousness, no, I want you to feel it all, every last agonized beat of your heart as the breath is slowly sucked from your lungs." The preacher/Kelvin reached forward to lay a hand on Dean's forehead, the hunter's skin sizzling under the touch as his eyes sprang open and his head lifted from its forward drooped position to lie flat against the wall behind him, his breath now coming in laboured gasps.

Despite the agony searing through every part of his body Dean was at last able to see the other two occupants of the room for who they really were and if he'd had the strength would have cried at the relief of seeing his brother standing opposite him, the look in his eyes every inch the Sammy he knew and then there was Bobby, the gruff exterior of the man belying the soft centre Dean knew existed within the man who had become a father figure to him and Sammy.

"Dean" Sam caught his brother's attention "You're gonna be fine Dean, just breathe slowly, he's playin with your mind, it's not real."

"I hate to tell you this Dean but your brother is deluded, but you already know that don't you, you can feel your chest getting tighter and tighter, it's getting harder and harder to breathe, your eyes are misting over and you want nothing more than to close your eyes and leave all the nasty pain behind, you're ready to give up." The preacher's eyes bored into his captive. "Am I right or am I right?"

"No! Dean, don't you dare give up, you fight this, you hear me. Dean, look at me." Sam's voice was strong and steady as he issued the order even whilst inside the terror that the preacher was right ate away at him.

"Now don't you go running off anywhere young man" the preacher chuckled as he turned to face Sam and Bobby, both still held by an invisible force against the opposite wall "You and I have a little unfinished business do we not?" The preacher quirked an eyebrow as he came to a standstill in front of Sam. "Because I am a generous and god fearing man I am willing to forgive you, I will allow you to change your mind and come with me, join me in the fight against all that is bad with this world. You readily accepted my offer before this, this specimen" the preacher levelled a look of disgust towards Bobby "interrupted what would undoubtedly have become a partnership made in heaven. So, what do you say Sam?"

Sam's eyes narrowed as he listened to the preacher's offer, his ears hardly able to believe the words tumbling from the thin lips of a possessed Kelvin. Diverting his gaze from the figure standing before him Sam looked across the room, noticed how Dean's body struggled to pull in air, how his lips were once again tinged with blue, how the cuts and bruises stood out against the pallor of his skin and felt the anger rise within him at the unjustness of it all, that once again his brother was taking the brunt of a hunt gone bad. Bringing his eyes back to the preacher Sam almost spat "Go to hell you crazy fucking freak, how can you even think that I would choose you over my brother." Sam's eyes blazed with fury.

The preacher/Kelvin's face contorted in fury, his body trembled with barely concealed rage at the answer he'd received from the young hunter he'd chosen to be his student, the one he wanted to train to be his right hand man.

"You stupid, stupid child, you would forego everything I can offer you to stay here with these imbeciles."

"No contest." Sam shot back.

"That is not acceptable, you do not wish to come with me but I can promise you, you will have nothing, you will have forfeited what I could offer you for nothing, I intend to remove your brother from your life." The preacher/Kelvin lowered his head, mumbled words falling from his lips as the wall behind Dean began to glow.

Turning his attention from Sam and back towards the object of his hatred the preacher, hand raised to administer the final blow jumped back in shock as the glass of the window shattered, it's tiny shards scattering and flying though the air as the sound of a blast filled the room.

With the preacher's concentration broken Sam, Bobby and Dean were released from the restraints holding them against the wall. Bobby, caught unawares fell to the floor, Dean's exhausted body slid down the wall and Sam quickly found his feet, glanced around the room and then ran as fast as he could out of the door and down the stairs, the sound of his footsteps fading as Bobby stared at the empty space beside him, wondering what the hell the kid was thinking.

The preacher quickly regained his composure and renewed the hold he had on the two remaining hunters, both Bobby and Dean being dragged upright only to be pinned immobile once again.

"Did you see how fast he ran Dean, the brother you thought cared something for you didn't hesitate to run, to save himself, to leave you to your fate." The preacher goaded.

Unable to draw in enough air to answer Dean remained silent as he struggled to fight the ever increasing black spots dancing on the edge of his vision but inside a confusion of thoughts swirled and collided with each other, 'where had Sammy gone, had he really left to save himself, had he left Bobby to die, had he left him to die, why did he run, no, Sam wouldn't do that, Sam had a plan, that had to be it, Sam was planning something, but Sam was mad at him, Sam said he'd leave, said he'd never come back, no Sam didn't mean it, he was just mad, maybe he did mean it, maybe he had gone, maybe he'd carried out his threat…' Dean's thoughts were cut off by the sudden re-appearance of his brother, he watched through half closed lids and blurry vision as Sam strode into the room, stopped directly in front of Bobby and then spun, raised his arm and sprinkled some grey powder over the preacher's head, the whole time reciting barely audible Latin words.

Shock registered on the face of the preacher as he turned from his prey to find himself face to face with the boy he had set his sights on educating to his own high standards and didn't have enough time to act before the sensation of being torn inch by inch from the body of the hunter he'd taken as his new shell, the excrutiating agony something he'd never experienced before, even in the many countless years he'd presided over the woods, and was unable to halt the terrified scream which began as a low growl in the back of his throat from erupting as with a final pull the hunter's body slid bonelessly to the floor leaving his transparent, shimmering form exposed to the onslaught of his one time hoped for protégé's brutal actions.

Knowing that his end was near the preacher made one last attempt to take one of the hunters with him and as is the way with cowards, he chose the one least able to defend himself, he managed to shimmer his way towards Dean and reached one spindly hand towards the near to death young man, lowered it until it rested over his struggling heart, a malicious smile curving his lips as he relished the thought of the pain and devastation the loss would cause the two men who had brought about his demise but the smile wavered as he noticed the hunters blue tinged lips moving, as the gasped Latin words seeped into the air and invaded his fading form. With one last guttural scream the preacher exploded into a cascade of gritty black particles, the only remains being a tiny pile dust on the carpet which disappeared as a strong gust of wind blew through the room before once again everything became still.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

For a moment nobody moved, the silence in the room deafening until a low moan from the man sprawled on the floor jolted Sam and Bobby into action. Bobby knelt beside Kelvin before easing the confused man up and off the floor, sitting him in the chair beside the bed.

"Bobby?" Kelvin raised weary eyes, the pounding inside his skull causing him to squint "What happened? What'm I doing here? How'd I get here? God I'm tired."

"Just rest for now, I'll explain everything later." Bobby patted the man sympathetically on the shoulder.

"I was possessed? Oh god, I didn't hurt anyone did I?" Kelvin rubbed his head as he recalled all that had happened.

"I c a n d o i t."

Bobby's eyes settled on the two young hunters a short distance away. Sam was trying to help his brother up but Dean was having none of it, weakly batting the younger mans hands away and insisting in stuttered gasps that he was okay, that he'd be alright in a couple of minutes and would be able to get himself to his feet, his belief that now the preacher was gone his injuries would heal themselves coming across loud and clear and as far as Dean's breathing was concerned Bobby had to admit that it sounded a lot better than it had a short time ago, also noting that Dean's lips had lost some of the blue tinge but other than that, as far as he could see, Dean was still a mess.

"Dean" Bobby fell to his knees beside Sam in front of Dean "Stop bein a stubborn ass and let us help you."

"B e o k a y i n s e c." Dean insisted.

"No Dean, you won't, you need help, you look like you've gone ten rounds with a steam roller, your hand's broken, the fingers on your other hand look like they've bin fed through a mincer, your stitches've popped, your runnin a fever and I'm bettin yer ribs'er screamin blue murder so suck it up and let yer brother an me help yer." Bobby levelled a gaze on the slumped young man.

"Bobby…" Sam began, but Bobby didn't let him finish.

"An as for you thinking that now the preacher's gone you're just simply gonna heal, well, why the hell would you think your luck's gonna change now boy." Bobby paused to let his words sink in before continuing "Now Sam an me're gonna get you up off this floor an put you on that bed an then we're gonna take a look at the damage an we're gonna fix it an you are gonna let us. Is that clear?"

Dean remained silent and lowered his eyes, choosing to reply with a tiny inclination of his head.

Sam and Bobby took up position whilst Dean braced himself for the move knowing that it was gonna hurt but nothing prepared him for the onslaught of indescribable agony that tore through his body as soon as Sam and Bobby exerted pressure in order to lift him.

"Stop, stop, please just stop." Dean's breath hitched as the plea fell from his lips.

"We gotta do this Dean." Sam steeled himself to continue with the move even as his brother fought and lost the battle not to cry out in pain.

Dean fought to remain conscious, unable to understand why it hurt so damn much when he knew Bobby and Sam were being mindful to avoid wherever possible touching any obvious injuries, but the fire flaring throughout his body seemed to react violently to any kind of touch anywhere, no matter how tender, it was as though the skin were being slowly stripped away leaving raw nerve endings exposed, he began to heave, the bitter bile rising to sting the back of his throat before filling his mouth causing a gag reflex which in turn left his broken ribs screaming for respite.

Dean's last conscious thought was that he was gonna choke to death, he'd survived everything the preacher had thrown his way, his brother was safe, Bobby was safe and now he was gonna die and then, unable to fight any longer he gave himself to the dark, cold void, the frantic shouts of his brother fading to distant echoes until he knew no more.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

**T.B.C.**

Thanks for reading.


	12. Chapter 12

**The Preacher**

**Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.**

**Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.**

**Thank you to everyone who's put this story on alert and a special thank you to those of you who dropped me a review, they are very much appreciated.**

**To Heather, as I can't reply to your reviews I would just like to say thank you, you always bring a smile to my face with your wonderful reviews.**

**This is the final chapter; I really hope you enjoy it.**

**Chapter Twelve**

"Sam! **SAM!" **Bobby raised his voice to bring Sam back from the brink of the panic that had flooded the young man on seeing his brother fall into unconsciousness "I could really use a hand here." Bobby was satisfied that Dean had simply passed out and nothing more, which he knew they could use to their advantage.

Pressing fingers to Dean's neck Sam didn't move until he felt the familiar and comforting beat of his brother's pulse beating out a thrum and although it was still a little weaker than it should have been he was satisfied that Dean wasn't in any immediate danger of it stopping altogether so turned his attention to Bobby.

"You know what we need." Bobby didn't look up from the task of peeling Dean's blood and sweat soaked shirt away from the motionless body.

"Yeah, yeah okay" Sam rushed from the room only to return seconds later, his eyes falling on Kelvin who was still sitting slumped in the chair beside the bed and although Sam knew it completely unreasonable he wanted the man out of the same room his brother was in, couldn't quite lose the image of him taunting and playing with Dean just a short time ago.

"Kelvin you should rest." Sam fought to keep his voice level as he placed a supporting arm around the man's shoulders and exerted just enough pressure to let him know that that meant he was to move.

"I can help, let me help." Kelvin whispered.

"No!" Sam was unable to prevent the sharp refusal.

Bobby glanced up and caught the look in Sam's eyes, knowing that the kid was struggling against simply dragging Kelvin from the room he intercepted "Kelvin, Sam's right, you should rest, this is no place for you right now so how bout you go downstairs, make us all some coffee and then put your feet up for a time, you need to rest."

"Bobby, Sam, I'm sorry, really I am, if I coulda prevented any a this I woulda, you know that right."

"It wasn't your fault Kelvin, there's nothin you coulda done but right now we need to help Dean." Bobby's eyes sought out Sam's, the message in them clear.

"Bobby's right, you couldn't help it so let me help you downstairs so's you can rest, we'll talk later."

Bobby and Sam worked side by side until they'd stitched, bathed and bandaged Dean's black and blue body, they tucked ice packs around him to bring down the burning fever and then waited, both jumping forward as Dean wavered in and out of consciousness, as he tried to wriggle his body away from the ice packs, as he peered at them through half open hazy eyes, as he tried to fight off all attempts to force water into his mouth and then slumped back in their respective bedside chairs as his exhausted body became still.

It was a full twelve hours later before Dean became even half way lucid, his groans shocking a drowsy Sam and Bobby to wakefulness as he tried to push himself to a sitting position, the pain flaring through his system forcing him to abandon all thoughts of doing anything other than lying completely still.

"Sam?" Dean only continued when his brother's face appeared in his line of vision. "You okay?"

"I'm fine Dean, how about you, how do you feel." Sam softly asked.

"M'kay." Came the less than convincing reply.

"Yeah, sure you are Dean." Sam shot back, not really surprised that his brother had given the answer he had, after all, that's what Dean always did; he always hid his own pain behind a wall of bravado.

Dean swivelled his eyes to the left "Bobby" and then a thought struck him "The preacher, what happened to him?"

"What do you remember?" Bobby spoke as he and Sam shared a worried look.

"I remember, I remember" Dean turned his eyes to Sam "You did it, you kicked his ass." Dean smiled a small smile.

"We did it Dean, Bobby, you and me, we all played a part." Sam smiled at the look of relief that crossed his brother's face, the deep lines of pain and worry seeming to smooth out a little right before his eyes.

"Well if you boys don't mind I'm gonna go get me some coffee." Bobby announced.

"That'd be great Bobby." Dean enthusiastically replied.

"Sorry kid, coffee's out fer you, at least fer a coupla days." The older hunter grinned as a pout replaced the small smile on the young hunters face.

With Bobby gone the two brothers sat in companionable silence for a time before Dean broke the quiet.

"Sam, help me up would ya, I'm sick of staring at the ceiling."

"You need to rest Dean."

"I just wanna sit up Sam."

Taking pity on his brother Sam complied with his wishes.

"Ready?"

Dean braced himself "Yeah."

Sam placed his arms around his brother and gently slid him up amid muffled grunts of pain from Dean.

"Here, take these." Sam held out two small white pills in the palm of his hand, a bottle of Gatorade held in the other.

"S'okay Sammy, don't need em right now."

"Take em Dean." Sam demanded in a no nonsense tone.

Dean's eyes travelled to his hands, one heavily bandaged and the other in a plaster cast.

"Sorry Dean, sorry. Open wide."

Dean glared at his brother even as he complied with the request, snapping his mouth closed as soon as the pills were deposited on his tongue.

"You'r e not dry swallowing them Dean." Sam waved the bottle of Gatorade in front of his brother's face.

"No way Sam, I'm not a friggin baby." Dean pressed his lips together.

Sam chuckled "Open up Dean or I'm gonna call Bobby to come up here and…"

"Okay, okay." Dean knew his brother would carry out his threat and decided that if he had to be fed then he'd rather it be his brother who did it.

"There, that wasn't so bad was it?" Sam spluttered as he fought to bury the bubbling chuckles.

"Bitch."

Sam was unable to give the standard reply, his breath hitching as he continued to suppress spluttered laughter.

Dean refused to make eye contact with his brother but could see out of the corner of his eye that although the laughter had died Sam was still smiling and although he hated being dependent on anyone, even Sam, Dean was happy to see his brother relaxing a little.

Dean drifted in and out of sleep, his frustration at being unable to remain awake for longer than a couple of hours clearly obvious to Sam who tried everything to entertain his brother which was a job in itself, Dean being unable to sit still for longer than five minutes at a time before becoming fidgety, he'd always been the same Sam reflected, always had to be doing something, so Sam tried to entertain him with games of poker and black jack although Sam had to handle the cards for him due to his hands still being out of action which in turn led to Dean getting bored quickly, so Sam brought a tv into the room, Dean couldn't find anything that interested him so Sam fetched a radio, still Dean couldn't find anything to keep him occupied, as a last resort Sam suggested playing I-spy, the two of them laughing together until Dean's eyes slid closed and he fell into the most peaceful sleep Sam had seen him have since before the hunt for the preacher had begun

Sam slumped back in his chair, exhausted with trying to keep Dean entertained coupled with the fact that he'd yet to catch up on the sleep he'd missed out on since this whole thing began, preferring instead to sit by his brother's bed just in case Dean needed anything.

A hissed curse and a dull thud brought Sam out of his snatched slumber just in time to see Dean, who had somehow made it halfway to the door; fall to his knees, his upper body swaying as it seemingly prepared itself for the final descent to the rough, worn carpet.

"Dean! What the hell." Sam leapt from the chair and raced across the room, falling to his knees in front of his brother he wrapped strong arms around the trembling torso, a concerned frown creasing his forehead as he took in the beads of perspiration glistening on Dean's face. "C'mon, let's get you back to bed."

Happy now that his brother was once again safely tucked in bed and propped comfortably against the pillows Sam began the arduous task of trying to find out why Dean had taken it into his head to go walkabout.

"What were you thinkin Dean?"

Silence.

"Dean."

Dean peered at Sam through his lashes but remained silent.

"Where did you think you were going Dean?" Sam persisted.

"Don't matter."

"It does matter."

"Drop it Sam."

"No, I won't drop it, d'you have any idea just how sick you've been?"

"Pretty much."

"Pretty much, is that it?"

"What d'you want me to say Sam, you want me to say that yeah, I know that freaky ass bastard nearly finished me, that what you want huh?" Dean paused "Okay, you got it, I know what he did to me, I know that he nearly killed me but he didn't Sam, I'm still here an I know that's down to you an Bobby, but I can't lay here much longer, I'm gonna go crazy if I have to spend another day staring at these four walls."

Sam swallowed the lump in his throat before broaching a subject he'd been dreading "What d'you remember?"

Dean raised his head and looked Sam in the eye before answering the question.

"Everything, I remember everything. I remember Meg, and Jess and Mom crying and Dad mad as hell and…"

"You remember what I did to you."

"Not you, not the real you, it wasn't your fault Sam, I know that, always knew that even whilst I was in the, the…"

"I'm sorry." Sam averted his eyes from his brother's.

"Sam look at me." Dean commanded.

Sam peeped through too long shaggy bangs at his brother, his eyes full.

"It's not your fault; there was nothing you coulda done."

Sam lowered his eyes.

"You know as well as I do Sam that sometimes hunts go wrong, if something gets the drop on us there's nothing we can do about it, hell we've both been there, remember the shapeshifter and the siren, then there was Ellicot. There was nothing you coulda done so let it go cuz in the end we're still here, together, alive." Dean watched as his kid brother's eyes slowly rose to meet his. "You okay with this?"

Sam slowly nodded, his eyes shining with gratitude and respect for his always there for him sibling.

"Good" Dean began "Cuz I gotta go."

Sam shook his head "What, where?"

"You know."

Sam looked at him, puzzled.

Dean rolled his eyes before slowly spelling it out to his brother "I. Gotta. Go.

Realising what his brother meant Sam stuttered "Oh, you mean…"

"Yeah Sherlock, now help me outta here will ya." Dean kicked the bedclothes back.

"Uhuh Dean, no need." Sam gently pressed Dean back against the pillows before crouching low and reaching under the bed, a triumphant grin on his face as he straightened up to full height, long fingers clasped around a bottle.

"No way, no friggin way, now help me up or I swear to god I'm gonna do it myself even if I havta crawl to the bathroom." Dean growled.

Sam made to walk towards the door.

"Where're you goin?"

"Gonna call Bobby, he said to fetch him if you gave me any trouble." Sam moved slowly until he was standing in the doorway, a grin forming on his face as his brother called him back.

"No, wait" The last thing Dean wanted was Bobby AND Sam around whilst he took care of business. "This aint friggin funny Sam, first you force me to drink gallons of that crap" Dean nodded toward the bedside table, the top of which was littered with some empty and some full bottles of Gatorade "and then you tell me I gotta pee in a bottle."

"Don't worry Dean, I won't look." Sam chuckled.

"Good job, wouldn't want you to get jealous." Dean shot back with a smirk.

"Jerk."

"Bitch."

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

As soon as Sam could be certain that Dean was asleep and not putting on a show for him in order to be able to make another bid for freedom he crept out of the room and ran downstairs, finally finding Bobby working on a car out back.

"Hey Sam." Bobby greeted the young man.

"Bobby, what d'you think about moving Dean downstairs onto the couch, he's gettin pretty restless, I've already had to threaten him with you a coupla times." Sam finished with a grin.

Bobby wiped the oil from his hands on an old rag he had tucked into his waistband before straightening up and turning to face the kid, his eyes taking in the slumped shoulders, colourless skin, dull eyes with huge bags underneath and shaking hands, all in all the kid exuded an air of complete exhaustion and Bobby worried how much longer Sam'd be able to keep going without crashing.

"Sam, you are gettin some rest yerself aren't yer? Bobby pinned searching eyes on Sam.

"What, yeah, I'm okay" Sam chewed on his lower lip as tears involuntarily filled his eyes.

"C'mon kid." Bobby placed an arm around Sam's back and slowly guided him to the rickety old porch where he pushed him down into one of the tattered wicker chairs before pulling the matching one close and sitting down himself. "Sam, you ain't gonna do yer brother no good if yer burn yerself out, Dean's gettin better but he's gonna need you to be strong, I've heard the nightmares Sam, he's gonna need you to be there fer him. Bobby patted Sam's knee "Don't move, I'll be back in a minute."

In reality Sam was exhausted beyond anything he'd ever felt before, his body ached and his head spun when he stood, but he also wanted to be there for his brother, wanted to make sure that whenever Dean needed him he'd be there, after all, that was what Dean'd done his whole life for him and Sam considered it only fair that he took his turn, paid back in some small way the love, care, understanding and shelter he'd been showered with for most of his life.

"Here, get this down yer." Bobby handed Sam a bottle of Gatorade.

Sam looked questioningly at the older hunter.

"If I'm not very much mistaken, and I'm pretty sure I'm not, you're on the verge of crashing Sam, this'll help a little but you've gotta start lookin after yerself as well as yer brother, you didn't exactly have an easy ride of it in them woods, it all takes it's toll Sam, so I'll tell yer what we're gonna do.

Sam unscrewed the top off the bottle and took a long pull as he listened to Bobby.

"We're gonna get Dean moved downstairs, see if he can keep a little food down, check his wounds, redress those that need it, a'course, his hands're gonna need more help than either me or you can give him but I'm pretty certain I can sort that when the time comes, and then I'm gonna switch on the tv and you are **both** gonna do nothing more'n sit in front of the damn thing." What Bobby really wanted was banish Sam to the bedroom upstairs but knew without a doubt that he'd have a fight on his hands, a fight he knew he didn't have a hope in hell of winning right now with Sam's need to be near to his brother, his need to keep him in his sights which Bobby could understand to a certain extent, he knew that Dean had very nearly not made it out of this hunt, that it was too close a call for Sam to be able to just shake off and carry on as normal. Bobby shook thoughts of the time Dean had been torn apart by the hell hounds, the image of Sam, heartbroken and sobbing uncontrollably as he cradled his dead brother in his arms from his mind, it being a time Bobby himself had trouble coming to terms with. "So whaddya say?" Bobby pulled himself back to the present.

"Yeah, good, that's good; I'll just go check on Dean before we start gettin everything ready."

Bobby shook his head as he watched Sam disappear before pulling himself to his feet and going inside himself.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

Dean began waking just as his brother walked into the room but instead of letting him know he was awake he quickly closed his eyes, listening as the younger man paced back and forth beside the bed and had to call on every ounce of restraint when he felt his brothers unmistakeably large hand rest against the skin of his forehead, the "hmm" quickly followed by Sam creeping from the room and lightly running down the stairs.

Dean lay in the quiet room, eyes still closed as he mulled over something that'd been worrying him from the time he managed to see his brother clearly for the first time since leaving the woods. The floorboards creaking brought his eyes snapping open to see Bobby standing looking down at him.

"Bobby."

"How you feelin?"

"Better. Where's Sam?"

"Sam's downstairs gettin everythin ready to move you."

"Oh thank god, I finally get to leave this godforsaken room." Raising sheepish eyes to the older man he finished "No offence Bobby."

"Non taken son."

Almost before Bobby had finished speaking Dean raised the subject of his brother "Bobby, is Sam okay?"

"Why d'you ask?"

"He looks…"

"Exhausted Dean, yer brother is runnin himself into the ground lookin out fer you, has done ever since we got yer back here, I don't think he's slept more'n five minutes the whole time."

Dean pushed the bedclothes aside with his casted arm and made to get out of bed before being stopped by Bobby.

"What d'you think you're doin?

"I'm gonna go an knock some sense into Sam's thick skull, I mean what's he thinking, he's gonna make himself ill."

"An you wouldn't a done the same?" Bobby's raised his eyebrows as he spoke.

"That's different."

"Why."

"What?"

"Why is it different?"

Dean floundered for a minute "Cuz it just is, I look out for him, always have, always will."

"What, an you think he don't feel the same."

Deflated Dean sank back against the pillows "Okay Einstein, how do we get around this."

"Funny you should say that" Bobby began "Cuz I have a plan and cut the sarcasm."

"Sorry Bobby. So what's this plan?"

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

A good hour later and Dean was safely ensconced on the comfortable over stuffed sofa after having been able to make it down the stairs practically unaided apart from a slight stumble as he reached the last step, his legs suddenly turning to jelly but Dean was happy, this being the furthest he'd been allowed to walk since before all this had begun, the most he'd been allowed to do prior had been when Sam, in his role as physio, had helped Dean take one or two steps away from the bed and then the return one or two steps back to the bed where he was forced to sit on the edge and endure his brothers twice daily massage of his thighs and calves, something that Dean insisted wasn't necessary as his legs were just about the one place on his body where no serious injury had been inflicted, just minor cuts and bruises, but Sam insisted so he had had to simply grin and bear it.

"Hey Bobby, if I promise to be good can I have that coffee now." Dean asked with a smirk.

Walking to stand in front of the sofa, hands on hips Bobby levelled a glare on the young man "If yer not careful yer gonna find yerself back in the bed you just left."

Sam peered over Bobby's shoulder, a small chuckle escaping as he grinned.

Bobby spun on his heel until his face was inches from the youngest Winchester and growled "I don't know what you find so damn funny cos if you don't get your ass in that chair you'll be in the room next door." Bobby's eyes rose to look at the ceiling.

This time it was Dean's turn to chuckle at his brother's expense as Sam dutifully threw himself into the voluminous, inviting softness of the enormous armchair, but the minute Bobby made to leave Sam leapt to his feet and chased after him, catching him just as he was about to exit the room. "Bobby" he asked in a whisper, his eyes travelling across the room to his brother to make sure Dean couldn't hear "Where'd Kelvin go?"

"He left, said he needed to get away, sort his head out." Bobby explained.

"Good." Was Sam's only reply, he knew none of what had happened was Kelvin's fault but he just didn't want the man around his brother.

"It wasn't his fault Sam."

"I know Bobby, I just can't help being glad he's not around anymore."

Bobby searched the young hunter's eyes and was satisfied that Sam meant no harm in his feelings toward Kelvin, he was simply looking out for his brother.

Patting Sam on the shoulder Bobby simply said "I know son, now go rest, I'll see about getting us some coffee."

When Bobby returned Dean was happily watching a tv show about how to take apart and rebuild the engine of a Ford Mustang. His face breaking out in a wide grin he nodded in his brother's direction "Worked like a dream Bobby."

Bobby came further into the room, his grin matching Dean's as he looked down on Sam curled into the chair, softly snoring as he slept.

Within twenty minutes, just as the presenter of the tv show was about to begin rebuilding the engine Bobby watched as Dean's eyes drooped until he too was sound asleep.

Pulling the blanket which was draped over the back of the sofa Bobby threw it over the sleeping hunter before moving across the room and doing the same for Sam.

"Sleep tight boys, you deserve it." Bobby whispered as he turned off the tv and made to leave the room.

**0*0*0*0*0*0*0*0**

The End.

Thanks for reading.


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